All The King's Horses
by The 483
Summary: Taking place a short time after the third season of the Anime, Just a story of some of what may have been going in the aftermath of the Goddesses revival and the effect memory, or not memory of the conquest had on Chihiro. Was hoping for fluff, but it seems to have eluded me. One-shot, mostly surrounding and from the perspective of Chihiro. Minor swearing.
1. Chapter 1

_The World God Only Knows: All the Kings Horses…_

 _By: The 483_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the The World God Only Knows Franchise._

 _ **Spoiler Alert: Warning: Light to mild spoilers for the Anime may be included herein.**_

 _ **Bah. I infuriate myself. Anyway, all that prior stuff about a oneshot… well, I decided I wanted to do more with this, rather than a branch, so I am chopping this into three parts, and will be working (slowly and choppily) on another part or two. So, sorry for the false start, and I am not changing anything, so when I finally manage to plop the next part, you won't have to reread this.**_

 **All the Kings Horses…**

 _Keima Katsuragi peeked over the wall…_

 _Between 2d and 3d, where he found a girl…_

 _Who, without being focused, fell prey to his call…_

 _So now all the King's horses…_

 _And all the King's men…_

 _Couldn't not put poor Keima's world back together again._

Elucia De Lute Ima, better known as Elsie, was somewhat pensive as she flew silently next to her good friend, Haqua Du Lot Herminium. Their handler for the Lost Souls Team, Nora Floriann Leoria, had summoned them to report to the chief herself. This made Haqua nervous, but Elsie's ever present good spirits did not allow her to fret. She was just curious.

"You shouldn't worry so much, Haqua. I am sure it couldn't be anything bad." Haqua bit her lip as they flew over the dark, sprawling layout of Neo Hell.

"I don't know, Els." She replied, skeptically. "The last time I was recalled, I did end up in jail." Elsie smiled her vapid smile at her friend. They were unusually close, which was a bit surprising, considering their differences. A few months earlier, this would not have been conceivable. Haqua had always looked down upon Elsie, seeing her as not too bright, and pretty simple. Haqua had been top of her class, while she did not even know how Elsie had managed to graduate. But when she had found Elsie after the Lost Souls teams had been deployed, having captured several while she herself had captured none… it was unbearable. In short, the soul she had been hunting had infested her, and Elsie, being Elsie, had managed to break it loose from her. And the hell of it was, she had looked up to Haqua even more after the incident! It was confounding, but allowed Haqua to see Elsie as someone nearly equal to her, rather than someone to look down on. They had been close ever since, despite that it seemed quite evident that Elsie was perfectly aware that she had a crush on her Soul Collecting partner.

"Aww, it will be fine. Vintage is gone, the Goddesses are keeping watch, and we're bringing in more lost souls all the time. I am sure it's just routine, or an announcement or something for all of the teams."

"Vintage is not gone." Haqua shot back as they came into view of the Chief's building. "That girl I fought… she was never caught."

"But there has been no sign of her yet, and everything else has been running smoothly. Relax." They descended, and came in for a soft, walking landing on the landing flat outside the Bureau of Lost Souls building. As they moved into the foyer, Nora, who had been standing just inside the door, leaning against the wall, smiled, and spoke softly.

"Well, if it isn't my two favorite subordinates." She said in a low purr, the shiny gold armlet that was the gift for her promotion, and badge of her office glittering in the low light.

"Oh, Nora! Hi!" Elsie called happily, as if this meeting were unexpected.

"Why are you surprised, Els? She is the one who told us to report." Haqua said as a sigh.

"I am not surprised, and I am allowed to just be happy to see a friend." She said, as scornfully as she could manage, which wasn't much.

"Alright, whatever. What's the problem, Nora?" Haqua continued, casting a skeptical glance at her "boss." She gave a playful frown back.

"Haqua, if you're always so negative, you will never catch his eye." She said in a breathless voice that helped Haqua's face go fully red.

"W-w-hat! I don't like _him!_ " She expounded in a sputter. Nora's smile grew wolfish as she placed her finger to her chin and looked thoughtful.

"Odd. I didn't mention the person. So you really are into that human. Interesting." Haqua began to sputter even less coherently, and Elsie looked at her with big, round eyes.

"Haqua… you mean… that you really _do_ like the Divine Brother?"

"WHAT!? You knew!" Haqua forgot her embarrassment in light of this revelation. Elsie looked put out at her surprise.

"You were never exactly subtle about it…" She puffed out her cheeks and looked upset. Nora chuckled as she watched.

"Ah, to be young. You two have so much fun. Now, come on, the Chief is waiting." Having had her fun, she turned, and moved deeper into the building. After casting one last look at a still put out Elsie, Haqua followed, and Elsie in turn followed her.

"You dodged my question on why we were summoned." Haqua said, once she fell into step next to Nora.

"Oh? I did not. I never had any intention of answering it. It is not my business to reveal the Chief's business. You'll just have to ask her." Nora then ignored any other inquiries on the subject until they arrived at the door that lead into the top boss's office. Nora rapped on the door three times with a knuckle, and then pushed her way in when she was welcomed.

"Madam Dokuro Skull, Nora, Haqua, and Elsie, reporting as ordered." This caught Haqua's attention. If Nora had been summoned as well… this was bigger than she thought.

"Very good, thank you all for making time to come." The diminutive skeletal woman said, her warm smile, not visible on her face, carried through her voice. "I am sure you have all wondered why I called you here, so let me not delay. I wish to present the three of you with a commendation for your performance over the last two months." Haqua, ready to flinch at what she presumed was bad news, was suddenly startled so badly she took an involuntary step back. "Is something the matter?" Dokuro asked, a hint of concern coloring the words.

"N-no. What do you mean, commendation?"

"Well, in the two months since the Goddesses were restored within the bodies of those human girls, your section, headed by Nora and including you, have captured an unprecedented 25 souls. Elsie's record before this was impressive, but with the three of you, your efficiency borders on astounding. If I may be so bold, what is the secret to your success?" Haqua got the bad feeling that the Chief believed it was a combination of Haqua's natural skill, Nora's management, and Elsie's natural dumb luck. But in all honesty, it had very little to do with that.

After the Goddesses had destroyed the Vintage Cell located in Point Rock, Keima Katsuragi, Elsie's soul capturing buddy, had gone into a week of seclusion. He did not leave his room for anything other than the bathroom for days. Elsie had been bringing him meals, after the third day, and Haqua before that. Elsie, fresh off her week long assignment of being Kanon Nakagawa, a popular pop idol, classmate, and Goddess host, had slept most of those first three days.

But on that Saturday afternoon, when Keima emerged form isolation, the girls biting their nails, wondering if he had fully collapsed into his own 2d world… it was as if nothing had happened. He was his usual confident, vaguely charismatic, scornful self. Well, not entirely the same. He threw himself fully into the task of collecting the Lost Souls. He had conferenced with both Haqua's and Nora's buddies, a middle aged house wife and fellow teenaged boy respectively. He set up a system where Nora, Haqua, and Elsie would fly around, finding hosts of Lost Souls, flag them, and then turn over what they could to Haqua's buddy. Her, having a lot of time on her hands, skill with a computer, and a husband who worked in the government, researched the targets, and came up with detailed dossiers. These then passed to Keima, who formulated routes to the conquest of the targets. Then, he would assign one to Nora's buddy, Ryo Asuma, giving him his "script." Keima would then tackle the rest of that batch. In those 2 months, he was never running less than 3 conquests at a time, once running six, when one conquest's sister became infested in the middle of the conquest.

All three of the Demons were kept almost as busy, running support. Haqua enjoyed the good marks that Keima's near zealous push added to her prestige, but Elsie was worried. She had been with Keima since the start, and he had fought it every step of the way. His new enthusiasm didn't fit, and she didn't like how hard he was pushing himself. A sign that constantly batted about in the back of her mind, was the fact that, not even once during this time, had he been using his PFP as anything other a web browser. And Keima not escaping into his games while outside or in school, was a clear red flag for her. But she didn't really understand her own misgiving, so she didn't voice it. She suspected that Elsie was worried too, but they were all so exhausted it was hard to tell.

Haqua felt she could not really tell the Chief that their progress was all due to Keima's active taking over of the way they hunted Lost Souls, so she forced herself to swallow her pride, and blow a minor part of it out of proportion. She took a deep breath.

"Well, Madam, as much as I am loath to admit it…" This part was not fabrication. She really, _really_ hated to say it. "… I have to admit that under Nora's… superior guidance as our section leader, our whole approach has changed. Instead of just working as single pairs, she caused us to pool our resources, and our performance has improved thanks to her leadership and strategy." Haqua's face hurt from the pressure she felt, and Nora's bemused smile didn't help. She had to clench her teeth and breathe shallowly to keep herself in check.

"Well, that does coincide with the spike in performance. Very well, you have outpaced all of the other teams by a significant margin. I am still placing the commendation in each of your service records. Thank you for your continued hard work. Keep it up. You are dismissed." The three bowed, and walked out quietly, except for Nora, whose smirk was so loud it made Haqua a bit ill as it bored into the back of her head. Haqua had her shoulders braced for the comment she knew was coming, but jumped as Nora slid her arms around her.

"Oh, Haqua… I didn't know you felt so strongly about my leadership!" She simpered, her words drooling sarcasm. Haqua tried to shake her off, to no avail, while Elsie smiled as watched happily, still glowing from the praise.

"Get off! I just said that because there was no way in hell that I was going to tell the chief that a human is directing all of our efforts, and clearing souls at an unprecedented rate."

"Harrumph. You won't admit it, yet you are happy to take credit for his actions." Haqua finally managed to shake Nora loose.

"That's not it at all. Katsuragi probably wouldn't want the credit he is due, anyway. Right Elsie?" She said imploringly to her friend.

"Well... I guess you're right. He never really has cared for anything other than getting done with this job, so he can go back to his games." She said, dubiously at the last. She then clouded slightly. "…but even once he accepted the reality… he never really fell into it like he has now. He just reacted as Lost Souls appeared… he wasn't active about it." She then looked up with her big, sad eyes at Haqua. "Haqua… did something happen to the Divine Brother while I was being Kanon? He seems… weird since I got back." Nora cocked a brow at her.

"He wasn't exactly not strange before the whole ordeal with Vintage." She commented. Elsie shook her head.

"No. It's not that. He's just… something is different. It's like… his attention is elsewhere, even more so then before."

"I don't know. I didn't see anything weird happen." But there were those few days I was in jail, she thought, but did not vocalize. "But let's get home."

(…)

 _A week later_

Chihiro Kosaka paced that same few feet of pavement in front of _The Café Grandpa_ that she had on at least 11 different days over the past two months. The sun was setting, and the orange light and gleaming clouds could not distract her from the raging torrent of mixed thoughts coursing through her head.

She didn't NEED an excuse to come to a café, right? Of course not. She could go anywhere she damn well pleased. At least… that was the theory. But what if HE was in there? Huh? What then? Of course, she knew how to play that off. Her nose would go in the air, and she would let out a disgusted huff and ignore him... ah, who was she kidding. If she really believe she could do that… she would have made it inside before now. Grrr! It was so frustrating. She knew how she wanted to act… but she knew she couldn't do it. She couldn't even guarantee that she wouldn't cry, and she refused to do that! At the same time, smashing him like a bug was appealing, too.

Why the hell did this have to be so complex? Everything had been well, the last time they had spoken, right before the Mai-High festival. But, then, they had both been up for more than 24 hours, then, and the events of the prior day didn't really leave much room for overly emotional reactions. She was still a little tired just thinking of how beat she was after the band had finished their set, and she had finished crying while the other girls tried to calm her.

The urge to cause harm momentarily became strongest, and she almost made it to the door before her fear and embarrassment reined her in. She put her back to the building, and took a deep breath to calm herself, before choking on it when a voice sounded behind her.

"Chihiro, hi!" She whipped around to find Elsie and Katsuragi exiting the house, about to leave.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, mildly curious. She flamed.

"What am I doing here? What are you doing here?" She swore at herself as soon as she spoke. Even Elsie looked confused at that, so she knew she had blundered.

"Did you come by to see me? I am afraid I have to leave." She looked apologetic as she said it.

"Oh, no. That's okay, Els. I actually just came to get some coffee. I have a late study night tonight, and I was looking to get a pick me up." She was impressed at how the lie just flowed free, by itself. Elsie looked pleased.

"That's great! But… why come all the way here? Aren't there shops closer to your home?" Crap. She thought fast, and grasped at the first idea that came to her, compliments of something Ayumi had stated.

"Well, yeah, but I happened to have some of the coffee your idiot brother made at the festival, and thought I'd see just how much better the real stuff was." She said stiffly, hoping the setting sunlight hid the blush she could feel in her cheeks, and that the arrogant burr in her voice was a lot more convincing then she felt it was. Keima adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose, debated internally for a moment, and sighed.

"I suppose this is fortuitous. I have been meaning to talk to you, but haven't found the time. Chihiro looked up sharply.

"Huh?" Keima crossed his arm, and put on his least emotive faint frown.

"I just wanted to apologize about involving you in that mess a few months back. I cannot remember if I had apologized, so I wanted to say, that I am sorry you had to get involved in that." He averted his eyes, then turned to a shocked Elsie, and ignored her expression. "Let's go, Elsie, or we're going to be late." And he left. Both girls stared at him as he moved down the road at a quick walk, then looked to each other, before Elsie remembered she was supposed to follow."

"Divine Brother! Wait for me!" And she gathered her broom to her chest and dashed after him. Chihiro watched her recede, blinking in surprise, before her anger managed to reassert itself, and she hitched up her bag and went into the shop. Meanwhile, Haqua, who had been standing in the front door, sipping a mug of tea, looked dour, having seen the whole thing. With that one unsolicited apology, it had clicked in her mind what had happened. Keima had never acted like that… actually, had never initiated any action with a girl who was not on one of his conquest paths. She knew, with a painful certainty, that Keima liked Chihiro. With her mind clouding up to storm, she closed the door, and returned into the house.

 **(End amended part 1)**


	2. Chapter 2

_The World God Only Knows: All the Kings Horses…_

 _By: The 483_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the The World God Only Knows Franchise._

 _ **Spoiler Alert: Warning: Light to mild spoilers for the Anime may be included herein.**_

 _ **As stated previously, just chopping the first monster down to size.**_

 **All the Kings Horses…**

 **2**

Chihiro moved inside the café, walking up to the counter, and grabbing a stool, barely aware that there was only a young couple inside, and an older gentleman reading a newspaper. The woman behind the counter greeted her, and took her order, but Chihiro was so distracted by her own thoughts, she didn't even pay attention to what she was ordering.

She was trying to figure out if the exchange had left her depressed, or simply angry. What the hell was with him, anyway? She didn't want his pity, his apology. She wanted him to grovel, to beg _her_ forgiveness. To hurt like she did, to break, to die… to like her like she liked him… She let out a soul weary sigh, and tasted the drink that had just been set in front of her. It snapped her back to her senses. It was good. Really good. Better then she had expected. It wasn't that it was really different then commercial chain coffee… but there was just a little something that made it great, instead of merely good.

Wanting to keep her mind off of Katsuragi and her own funk over him, she pulled out a book, and decided some actual study would not hurt. She focused on the page, and it took her nearly 10 minutes to realize she had been looking at the same page the whole time, and had absorbed none of it. So much so that when she tried again, she found it wasn't even the correct chapter. With a sigh, she closed it, and was about to put her head down on her arms, when the lady behind the counter spoke.

"Need a refill?" She looked up, for the first time noticing anything about her. She had orange hair bound up, the same style of glasses as Keima, a tall, fit build, and a general air that spelled "matriarch." Doing a mental check of her finances, she shook her head.

"I am afraid I can't afford anymore, but thank you." She looked her over quickly, then smiled.

"By your uniform, is it safe to assume you go to Maijima High?"

"Yes, Ma'am." The woman's smile broadened.

"Do you perhaps know my kids? Katsuragi?" Chihiro nodded, wondering where this was going.

"Yeah. Elsie is in a band with me, and were in the same class." Mrs. Katsuragi nodded, as if she knew this, and poured more coffee.

"Oh, well, if you're a friend of my daughter, you don't have to worry. Even though it's Saturday, we don't get a lot of people drinking this stuff this late. Have as much as you like." She put the silver pot back on a hot plate, and leaned down on the counter. "If you've come by to see her, she isn't home tonight." Chihiro tried not to look dour.

"I know. I ran in to her and Katsuragi as I was coming in." She thought she had kept her voice level, but something changed in the glint in the woman's eyes.

"Oh, so you know Keima, too?" Chihiro could tell from the heat in her face that her cheeks were likely glowing.

"Umm… yeah… we've… met." She managed.

"If you don't mind… could I ask you how he is in class? I've asked Elsie, but she seems to be a little in awe of her older brother. I mean, he is always getting good grades… but he's kind of a…" She patted her chin with a finger, thinking of the correct word.

"Loaner?" Chihiro cautiously supplied.

"Well, I was going to say "otaku freak," but yours works, I suppose." Mrs. Katsuragi gave a charmingly disarming smile that looked very similar to the one Keima could deliver, and Chihiro warmed to the woman enough that she managed a weak smile. The two had managed to, "let their hair down" as it were. The other customers were gone now, and the two were alone, and Mari Katsuragi would get bored when no one was around. She liked the company, and was never overly formal when she didn't need to be.

"Do you know what is up with him?" She asked. "I mean, I always used to worry he'd come home on day with one of those cardboard girls they but in shop windows and the like, and tell me they were getting married. I actually used to have dreams like that." She shuddered. She then looked pensive. "But, a while back, he started staying out after school, going out on weekends, and seeming to do more than just sit in his room, playing his games."

"I don't rightly know, Ma'am. We were never more than acquaintances…" Mrs. Katsuragi's eyes flashed again, and Chihiro guessed she wasn't fooling her at all. "…but he started going around with different girls near the beginning of the year, and seems to be popular with… some girls. That T.V. Idol, Kanon, even confessed to him in the middle of class."

"Oh? I've seen her. Elsie likes her." She seemed impressed. She then looked shrewd. "You say he's been going around with some girls? Forgive me if this is rude, but, might you be included in that tally?" Now she knew she was bright red.

"Y-yes, Ma'am. Once. But he sees so many girls… it never lasts long… and I don't think he ever really _likes_ any of them." To Chihiro's surprise, Mrs. Katsuragi chuckled.

"A year ago, I wouldn't have thought it possible. But, I guess maybe he takes after his dad." Noticing Chihiro looked confused, she elaborated. "Keiichi, my husband, is in south America right now. But let me let you in on a little secret. You know Elsie and her sister Haqua?" She waited for Chihiro to nod before continuing. "Well, they are not really my daughters, by blood, anyway. See, Keiichi had both Haqua and Elsie with other women. But I did not find out about it until recently, when they showed up on my door step, with letters explaining their circumstances. He denies it of course, but I do my best. They are good girls." She smiled wistfully, and muttered to herself. "Stupid husband." She said it in a loving whisper, before she shook the emotion off. "He'll get a hell of a surprise when he gets home." She shook her head again. "And I wouldn't say he doesn't like any of them. He's been depressed for a few months now, so something must have happened." Chihiro perked up, and Mrs. Katsuragi gave her a knowing smile.

"He's been depressed? He hasn't seemed any different that I have seen." She ran her hand through her bangs, then refilled her cup.

"A mother can tell. He's been off for a few months now." She sighed. "He finally comes out of his shell, and then gets bummed."

"Well, maybe if he didn't date every girl he met, he'd have less trouble facing himself." She said, a little more hotly then she was proud of.

"So, then he _did_ put his moves on you, didn't he, dear?" Chihiro's face finished turning fully red, and she sighed, and nodded in resignation.

"Yeah. I got duped pretty good." She said, sadly.

"Aww, poor girl. Are you okay?" She waved off the concern.

"Yeah, yeah. It was a long time ago. It just kind of irked me, because right after her got done with me… he started asking me to help him pick up on my best friend, who he then went about proposing to for an hour or so. Met her parents and everything."

"Oh, ouch. That's pretty bad. You still like him, though?" It didn't really sound like a question.

"Sometimes… I think I do… and then I think about it and I kind of just want him to go crawl into a hole and die." Chihiro then seemed to remember who she was talking to, and felt sheepish. "That's weird, isn't it?" Mrs. Katsuragi chuckled amicably.

"Not at all, child. I know just how you feel."

(…)

 _5 days later, Wednesday._

Chihiro was alone in the empty classroom they used for band practice, taking her time putting away her gear. She wasn't stalling, per se, she was just in no hurry to be anywhere. Elsie, Yui, and the rest had already left, so she was moderately surprised when she heard the door open. She turned, and saw Haqua, who waved shyly as she entered, and shut the door behind her.

"Oh, hi… um… Haqua. Elsie already left."

"I know. I actually came to see you." Chihiro was surprised again, and let her continue. "I never properly thanked you for your help. So now, I would like the opportunity to do so." Chihiro didn't need to ask about what.

"It isn't necessary, really. I'd rather not dwell on it." She said, raising a hand, and sighing.

"It _is_ necessary. And I have a choice of two gifts for you. After I saw you come to the café, I returned to Neo Hell to petition my boss for a token of appreciation. And I got approval, to offer you… this." Haqua said, pulling out a small bottle filled with an opaque teal colored liquid.

"If you accept and drink this, the whole part of your memory line where Katsuragi ran a conquest on you will be erased from your memory, leaving the week it happened intact, but with all recollections of him edited out. Completely safe, targeted specifically for only the events of that week, crafted by Neo Hell's most gifted Alchemist."

"What does that mean…" Chihiro said, confused, but not entirely uninterested.

"It means that it will be as if that week happened normally, as if you never associated with Keima at all in that time. It means that none of the pain that the memories of him pretending to like you will bother you anymore, a clean reset." There was a sort of appeal to this. But that meant, she would go back to just her mild crush, as if he had never toyed with her…never lied to her… never spoke to her… But she didn't know if that was what she wanted.

"What's the other option?" Now it was Haqua's turn to sigh.

"I got clearance to allow you to be let in on what has happened, and Me, Elsie, and Keima will sit down and explain the whole set up, and why you were involved at all." She said. Chihiro sat back against a desk, which slid under her weight, causing her to flail to regain her balance, wherein she plopped down on its top, cheeks glowing in embarrassment. That kind of crap never happened in the movies, damn it. She thought about it for a long couple of minutes, and then let out a soul cleansing sigh as she decided.

"As much as the memory wipe sounds appealing… I do treasure the memories, even if they hurt. It probably sounds stupid, but I don't want to forget." Haqua gave a weak smile.

"No, I understand. Very well, then, if you will come to the Katsuragi shop this Saturday night, we will explain to you what has been going on, and then I will try and express our gratitude properly. Will that work for you?"

"Yeah. I can make that. But…" she hesitated, then said while facing away, " … _he'll_ be there? He won't be running around after girls?" Haqua replied quietly, and somewhat dangerously.

"Oh, He'll be there. Whether he likes it or not. I _promise._ " She almost growled. Stupid humans. Ugh, they were so damn fickle and frustrating. And of course, she just _had_ to fall for one that she never stood a chance with.

(…)

Chihiro didn't have the same problem she had had the last time she had attempted to enter the _Café Grandpa_. There was no hesitance, she just walked up, and entered. She was dressed nicely, a blue tanktop over a white turtleneck, black knee length skirt and matching stockings. She had gone to an afternoon movie and dinner with Ayumi and Miyako prior to the soft 9 P.M. appointment to meet at the Café. She was surprised to find the café empty, except for Elsie and Haqua sitting at a table looking buoyant and slightly ill respectively. The table was covered with binders and papers, scribbled on in many different hands and colors, and Keima's PFP. He was behind the counter, putting away the last of the dishes he'd just cleaned, Elsie and Haqua having relieved Mari of Cleanup for the night, so as to have the Café for themselves that night. How they had gotten Keima to clean, she did not know, but she doubted it was voluntary.

"Hi, Chihiro!" Elsie said, her usual vapid enthusiasm causing her mouth to twitch as if it were considering a smile. Haqua nodded, and Keima made no indication that he was mentally present in the room.

"You. Coffee." Haqua said gruffly, and like a robotic server, Keima placed a steaming kettle on a plate, and provided 3 cups. "Sit." He did so, looking stiff, but untroubled. Haqua, however, did. "I am not really sure where to start…" She said, hesitantly, and she poured coffee for all three girls.

"I do!" Elsie bubbled. "Okay, so, I don't know if you already know this, but Haqua and I are demons from hell!" She said it as if she wear excited to be learning this herself.

"I knew Haqua was something odd, but I didn't know that. Demons? So does that mean you are bad?" Chihiro forwarded cautiously.

"Oh, my, no. Neo hell is run by demons who just want to do our job of purifying souls. The bad old days are done. We were sent here to help recover bad souls that have escaped from hell and are possessing humans." She continued.

"We thought they were just from a mass escape, but we now believe it was the group Vintage who released them to grow their powers so they could bring Hell back to the way it was before the Goddesses sealed the malevolent ones away." Haqua added.

"Right! That's why the girls were attacked. Tenri, Kanon, Ayumi, Tsukiyo, Shiori, and Yui all have Goddesses living inside them, growing strong from the feelings of love they receive."

"Okay… that is weird. Why are they there?" Chihiro asked, interested, but also somewhat mad at the way Katsuragi was seemingly not paying attention. Was she really that unimportant that he wouldn't even look at her?

"Okay, to explain that, first, we have to go into the Lost Souls team, and our jobs." Keima picked up when Haqua finished.

"The Lost Souls team is a group of demons who have contracted with humans in order to extract and capture the souls infecting human hosts. A Lost souls finds someone with a hole deep in their heart, and takes up residence. In order to force them out, something else needs to fill it. In this case, falling in love with another forces it out."

"Which the divine brother does with a kiss after running a conquest!" Elise chimed in with pride.

"Right. And due to his self-styled title of "the God of Conquest" he is currently the best at this by a wide margin." Haqua looked disgusted as she said this. She picked up the PFP, and flicked it open, displaying the initial contract and showing Chihiro. It was a challenge issued to try and conquer a certain unnamed girl.

"I receive lots of emails for advice due to my vast knowledge of how to wow virtual girls, so I figured it was just a new challenge. But when I accepted, this one," he hooked a thumb at Elsie, who beamed, "dropped out of the sky, and said I had to win over _real_ girls." He looked irritated. "And, there was a catch. This collar," he flicked the transparent purple band around his neck, which he had started wearing back in the spring, and matched Elsie's, "will detonate, taking my head off if I fail to meet the conditions of the contract. Namely, recovering _all_ of the lost souls." They were all quiet as Chihiro absorbed this.

"Okay… how many of the Souls have you recovered." She said, when she could think of nothing else.

"More than 30 in 6 months!" Elsie said. "Our productivity had more than tripled since Haqua started helping us. She is amazing!" Haqua grimaced at the density of her friend. Chihiro was carefully blank. 30 people. She liked a boy who had kissed. 30. People. Haqua, sensing the building rage, pushed another paper forward.

"This is a list of the conquest we made when we were searching for Goddesses. It was a box line chart of 14 girls, including the rich girl Mio, the student teacher Miss Nagase, and to her surprise, herself.

"Wait… why is my name on here?" She was puzzled, but had a lump of cold dread settled in her stomach bottom.

"Well, you see… the Goddesses in their sleeping forms, anchored to girls who had been freed of Lost Souls, drawn in by the dormant love residing in the girls hearts. Chihiro's face grew warm as she feared the implications that were being made. "We didn't know which of the girls conquered up to that point had been, and did not have time to do a thorough analysis. You see, Kanon, who had already been hosting the awakened Goddess Apollo, was being stalked by a Vintage assassin. You remember the day she grabbed Keima and told him she loved him, and was afraid? Okay, well, as they were running, Apollo took over, and left, and was attacked. Kanon had been hit with powerful assassination magic, and we needed the other 5 awakened Goddesses to save her. So, we only had a week to save her."

"How…" She started, and had to swallow. "How did you narrow it down?" Her voice held a darkness in it.

"Well, when a Lost Soul is pulled from the host, the host loses all memory of the conquest. But because the Goddess subsists on the love that had been locked away, those memories reawakened. After Kanon's mid class confession, there were 5 other girls who were pissed at Kiema. Ayumi, Yui, Tsukiyo, Shiori, and you. We already knew Tenri was a host, because Diana contacted us around the time Kanon was attacked, and revealed what she was, and that we needed to find her sisters."

"But I couldn't have been a candidate… I couldn't…" Chihiro said weekly. "No. I wouldn't forget…"

"No." Keima said flatly. "I am afraid it is true. Our first kiss on the roof… that was not our first kiss."

 ***SLAP***

Chihiro didn't know why she slapped him then. Maybe it was his disinterested tone, or the fact that he had played her, or more over played her TWICE. But she needed too. He didn't even register a reaction. Haqua pushed forward more papers, including a dossier on her, and multiple routes that were lined out with notations like "boring, uninteresting, no distinguishing variable, or side character at best." Included was a rather large stack profiling some pretty boy, and routes to conquer him. There was a marked section labeled "aborted."

"Yes, Chihiro. You were a conquest, and a hard one. We had thought your anger toward him after Kanon's confession meant you had had your memory back, as well, but it was just that you had a real crush on him." She had the urge to slap him again, even though Elsie spoke, but refrained. She thought it weird. She had no inkling that she had ever had any hole in her heart that a ghost could inhabit.

"You said that all the girls that got possessed had something wrong with them. But… I don't remember anything like that. What was my problem?" Keima adjusted his glasses with his middle finger, and looked at her, and she had to avert her own under the pressure of his stare.

"It had to do with the fact that you felt that you had no special talent or outstanding characteristic of your own. You felt boring compared to your friends, just casting around aimlessly while they worked with their talents or pursued their goals. That is why you started your band." His voice was level throughout, and it served to make Chihiro even angrier.

"No! I started the band because… um… because…" She stammered to a stop, and looked puzzled. Why had she started it again? She couldn't for the life of her remember it. She just remembered a pressing feeling that she needed to try it.

"You feel that?" Haqua chimed in, almost gravely. "That is the effect of the memory loss. The memories tied into that event, happened in conjunction with the conquest. So you cannot access them, correct?" There was a pause, then Chihiro let out a soul cleansing, explosively propelled, most unladylike, and very heartfelt expletive and sank back in her chair like she was deflating. Elsie made an awed sound, her eyes wide, while Haqua merely nodded her agreement. Chihiro was silent for a whole minute, before she decided she knew enough.

"Is that it?" She really was just another meaningless conquest to him. Her only value a chance that she might possess a different spirit, and later a goddess. Then why was Elsie her friend? Was she just hanging on to make sure she was clean? No, that couldn't be. She could feel that Elsie at least actually liked her, and she got the feeling she actually believed she was Katsuragi's little sister.

"That is the story." Haqua said diffidently. "And, option one is still available, if you've changed your mind."

"No, it's okay." Chihiro was suddenly spent, and very tired. She didn't even shake her head. "I appreciate you going to the trouble for me." At this Elsie looked puzzled, and Keima looked blank. Chihiro rose to leave, and paused when Haqua spoke.

"Keima will walk you home." She did not turn, and now she shook her head.

"No thanks, I'll be fine." She was worried that when the fatigue snapped, more tears would come, and she didn't have the will power to fight them tonight.

"Keima. Will walk. You home." There was a yelp as a foot was applied to a fundament that is not recommended to be stomped, as the reticent Katsuragi rose. A sharp shove moved him to the door.

 **(End amended part 2)**


	3. Chapter 3

_The World God Only Knows: All the Kings Horses…_

 _By: The 483_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the The World God Only Knows Franchise._

 _ **Spoiler Alert: Warning: Light to mild spoilers for the Anime may be included herein.**_

 _ **Yada yada, same as before, just more so.**_

 **All the Kings Horses…**

 **3**

Not a word had been uttered since departure. Chihiro walked a pace ahead of him, back and to her right, pacing her. She had experimented. If she moved faster or slower, he matched it. She didn't trust her voice to hold if she yelled at him like she wanted, but the ensuing rage did keep her tears in check. Now, about half way home, they were passing through a dark little strip of concrete bordered grass and trees, almost like a strip of park in the heart of the city. Gentle streetlamps stood sentry over stone benches. Off to the right, closer to the river, was one of the retirement parks, a space where elders congregated during the day to socialize and while away the hours, part of the effort to relieve pressure from the fact that people were living far longer then there was use for them. From the left, occasional lights of passing motorists blinked past in a strobe between the neat rows of partially screening trees.

The fact that this walk would have been romantic, under different circumstances, just aided bringing her blood to a slow boil.

"Chihi-" Keima started…

"Shut up!" She snapped, before he could finish. But with the breech in the silence, a crack had formed in the dam that held back her emotions, and as the contents slammed into the weakened structure, leaks began to sprout. Chihiro had to stop, her fists clenched tightly at her sides and her teeth barred as she tried to suppress it. But it was no use, and her resistance crumbled. She rounded on him, her heel pivoting on the sidewalk hard enough to squeak as she jabbed a finger in his chest, her breathing labored, he voice angry.

"What could you possibly say to me that you think I would want to hear right now?" Keima looked at her, his head slightly inclined, as he was only slightly taller than her. His face was an indifferent mask, as usual, and the light from the lamp above them caused glare in his glasses that hid his eyes.

"I am sorry." There was a white flash before her eyes, and she thought for a second that she had punched him like her impulses roared for.

"You're… sorry?" She said, darkly, and almost with a bit of giggle at the sheer nerve he had. "You… you really think that I want to hear that you are sorry?" She spoke in slow, jerky bursts. Keima adjusted his glassed.

"No. I would imagine you would like to hear that I am enduring some form of acute suffering for what I have done to you. But I am saying sorry, because it needs to be said." It was such a blunt statement that it took her a moment to track back, and figure out what he said. The level of self-awareness he possessed was a bit unnerving. She lost her anger in a quick burst of realizing its futility, and deflated visibly, her shoulders slumping. Its passing again left her tired, and almost rational. Too many emotional gearshifts in so short a time left her somewhat numb. But just maybe…

"You are playing me right now, aren't you? Like you did Ayumi, and Yui, and even me, back then, and again?" He didn't answer immediately, and she looked up into his face. He looked… unsure.

"No." He finally answered, his voice was firm, even if his features were not.

"Liar." She said. "You are so obvious, now that I think about it. I can almost see the routes and flags flowing through your mind, trying to figure out how to get the least troublesome ending. I am right, aren't I?" She felt she should be angry, but instead all she felt was a tired satisfaction that she's finally figured out a hard problem she had been presented, and hit all the right points. He looked almost sheepish. Cute, even.

"Yes." He replied. "When it comes to human interaction, it is just the way I think." Chihiro nodded, not really listening. But, she had this chance, and was too spent to be embarrassed anymore, so she was going to give him a piece of her mind.

"You do know that this is not a game, right? Each of these girls that you doing this to, we have real feelings, even if you are manufacturing them for your own purposes. We don't just disappear when you are no longer think of us. We're not just event pop ups that happen when you trigger certain scenes. You can see that this is wrong, right? It isn't like your games where you get the kiss, and that's the end of it all?" She droned in a tired monotone. But he replied almost sharply, causing Chihiro to meet the glare in his glasses again.

"But up until now, it has been like that." She blinked.

"And that makes it alright?" Was her reply, as she took a step back.

"You're damned right it did!" He said, forcefully, taking a step forward, now irritated with her. Her eyes widened, and she wondered if she should be scared. "Yes, I am doing this. But don't you think for a second that this is what I want!" Now he jabbed a finger toward him. She had seen him cross before. She had made him irritated often enough to know his reaction fairly well. But this was a new thing from him. Genuine emotion, unscripted, a burst of what he really felt, rather than something to provoke a reaction out of her.

"I _have_ to do this. If I don't, I go boom, and I don't want that. And I sure as hell never wanted this. I was content, playing my dating sims, ignoring the real world. I wanted nothing. _Nothing!_ To do with this, or any of you real girls. And it was alright, because, once the Lost Soul was captured, the girls forgot all the happenings with me, and I could move on, one step closer to returning to normal. But then this Goddess crap springs up, and now I've got 6 girls that I should be done with, all pissed at me because of something that _needed_ to be done despite that I did not want it." He then blinked at Chihiro. "Oh, excuse me, _seven_." He snorted sarcastically. "So, yes. I do know this is not a game, and I want to be done with it as soon as possible." Chihiro, startled, was quiet for a moment, before talking in a small voice.

"If you are so good… why couldn't you figure out I didn't remember before I got hurt?" Despite this blast of possibly the first true look of Keima she had ever seen, she still had room for self-pity.

"If I had had time, I possibly could have. But time was short, and you and Ayumi had equal chances of being the last Goddess. All I can say is I am sorry." That word again, pricking her like a tack, getting her heat up.

"Are you though? Are you really? Sorry for what? For me, because I have human feelings and matter, or for you, because now you have to deal with this inconvenience?" The last part she managed to get some bite into.

"Because I hurt you." He answered without pause, his voice normal again. Chihiro snapped back.

"Oh, please! Don't feed me that bullshit! For once, please, just this once, just tell me what you really feel. If you really feel even the slightest remorse, don't hide behind your persona, just be honest, and tell me the _truth!_ " Two major swears in one night. She was on a roll. Keima looked at her, adjusted his glasses, and sighed.

"Very well." She felt a shock, as his manner shifted. "I am sorry I did this to you, Chihiro, because once it was all done, and the Goddesses had dealt with Vintage, and I had a moment think, I realized that I do actually like you."

"…what?" She wasn't sure she heard him, a strange heavy thudding noise made it hard to hear."

"I am sorry, because I like you, Chihiro." His voice was a tad shaky. He sounded… vulnerable. And Keima was _never_ vulnerable. She tried to swallow, failed, managed it, and fought it.

"No. You are still lying." She choked out.

"No, I am not. When I told you, on the roof the night you kissed me, that I fooled you because I was irritated by your teasing, it was in part because I was startled because you were not a host, and because your feeling was genuine. Trying to disengage was all I could do." He did not elaborate, and Chihiro, now with tears creeping down her cheeks, (whether they were angry, sad, happy, or weary tears, she could not say) croaked a prod.

"Why?"

"Simple. Because if I returned your feelings, what would have happened?" It was her turn not to answer. "Exactly." He took her silence as the answer he wanted. "Elsie would have discovered another girl with a Lost Soul inside it, and my job goes on. If I had returned your feelings then, how would you have felt when I pursued Ayumi?" This time, he read her silence correctly, and nodded.

"And knowing that I liked you, how do you think it would have made me feel to hurt you with that, and then the next girl, and the next, and so on, because I cannot stop until I am released? Was it not easier for you just to hate me without the additional burden?" Chihiro felt her knees give, and luckily, was close enough to the stone bench to manage a graceless plop onto it. There was a sound like the roaring wind beating on her ears, even though the air was calm and still. She had wanted what she had wanted so long and so automatically, now that she had to think about it, she didn't have a clue what it was. The silence pressed on, because she just did not know what to say.

"So… what, then? Where does that leave us? I've tried, I really have, but I still like you, Keima." She said it almost as a sigh. She had wanted to hate him, but still, every time she thought about him, caught his eye in class, or thought she might work up the nerve to talk to him, her heart climbed into her throat and was hard swallow.

"What can happen other than nothing?" He asked, calmly. "There are only 3 options, only two that can happen, and only one I would choose." Chihiro spoke, or rather tried to; only wind came out at first, until she swallowed hard and got her voice back. She had learned that Keima was only able to be this calm when he was following one of his "routes." When he had been courting her, he was always precise and in control, the same as when she helped him with Ayumi. But when she had confessed to him on the roof, and kissed him, he was stunned almost speechless, because she had gone off script. So she knew she was not going to like what he had to say.

"…What options?" He again adjusted his glasses, on his nose, his eyes hidden in glare.

"The preferred route would be that you hate me, and we both forget about each other and move on before it causes you anymore pain then necessary." She thought she heard something in his voice there. Perhaps her was hurting like she was over this, behind his mask? Or maybe that was just fruitless wishful thinking of an unrequited love?

"Go on." She prodded when he was clearly not going to continue under his own volition.

"Well, to put it bluntly, I continue with my conquests, and you watch, and become more embittered and angry and grow to hate me. This I do not favor. I have never been a fan of the Yandere endings." Chihiro briefly saw a flash of white hot anger. She might have screamed in frustration.

"Damn it! This isn't one of you games! Just…" She was shouting, but to her surprise, he cut her off with a softly spoken word.

"It's the only way I know how to express what I feel." He said, more sadly then calmly, now. "And at least when I express it that way, it doesn't sound like some line I would just be feeding you. If I had said instead, that I don't want this, because I do not wish you to hurt over me because I am not worth it, would you have believed I was saying what I actually feel?" She didn't answer, because the word tasted foul in her mouth.

"Sorry." She managed. That was scarcely better. "What is the last option?"

"One I do not believe is possible. We could try to … I guess the word would be date? While I continue my conquests, and get rid of this damned collar, and see where we stand after that."

Chihiro thought about it in the fog of all passions spent. She was tired, drained, and didn't like _any_ of the options proposed. But, she knew what the best option was, and at times, could be logical.

"Alright, Keima, I know which one is best. So let's go with option…

(…)

It had been two weeks since she had met with Elsie, Haqua, and … Keima, in the Café, and spent the following day in bed, napping between bouts of tears and obsessive ceiling observation. And a half hour of stitching when a stuffed animal found her hand when she was having an anger moment. But now, approaching the courtyard afterschool, she was almost buoyant. About a week and a half ago, she met this boy, Terumi Fujiwara, who had seen her performance at the festival, months back, but had been too shy to approach her. So, having discovered that he was interested, she went after him. After all, isn't the best way to forget someone to find someone else? They got along well, and he was cute… it was by no means easy for her, but she had fun.

And now, she was meeting him behind the gym, for what, he didn't say, but she was wise to what he was laying down. He wanted to kiss her, of course. They had had two dates already, last Saturday and Sunday, and she had overtly hinted that she was not averse to this. But boys are really much shyer than girls, and she thought she might have to do it for him. She was moderately nervous. It would be only her second (third, really, but the first didn't count, of course) kiss, but she was almost looking forward to it. When she rounded, all casual like, the corner of the building, she found him, back toward her, staring at the sky, and she had a second of thought about jumping out and shouting "boo" or some such, but thought better of it. No need to scare the already flighty creature. Boys would grasp at any opportunity to doubt themselves, the poor things. He was an artist type, so even though they pursued different forms, they were of a mind. She called out gentle greeting, and after a few minutes of nervousness and fidgeting, she generously allowed him to kiss her.

It took everything she had not to jump as the formless mass of malignant energy sprung from his back like an airbag, expanding into a messy, blobiish thing. She was amazed at the apparent fact that he could not feel it. Before the thing was fully expelled, Elsie, bottle at the ready, was already sucking the Loose Soul into its prison. A few seconds, and it was done. Elsie flashed a thumbs up, and was gone.

Chihiro returned her attention to Terumi, they conversed for a few more moments, and he thanked her and bowed, and left her with a crooked smile on her face. She waited until he was well and fully gone, before she sighed. This was a truly odd thing, but, she was helping, and that felt good.

"Well done, Chihiro. Very impressive, for a first timer." Keima stood, checking off a line on a sheaf of paper he held, the plan for Chihiro's conquest of Terumi Fujiwara. Keima had not been looking forward to this one, as his fancy did not run to Yaoi, and he did not relish having to learn. He was still trying to forget Yui's second conquest, and that was only half way to it.

"You are _SURE_ he won't remember." She said, with an irritated look.

"Yes. Your own lack of memory of our first encounter should be all the proof. And if you believe I would lie to you about it, you know Elsie wouldn't."

"Right, right." She waved it off impatiently. "Whatever. What next?" He fidgeted. He never fidgeted.

"Well, I was wondering if you might like to… say… come and get a cup of coffee or so… at the café?" Chihiro arched a brow, inwardly quite happy.

"Won't that interfere?" He shook his head.

"No. All I have got left currently is Aoi, and our second to last event is tomorrow."

"Very well, you've convinced me." She marched forward, and grabbed his arm, turning him and continuing to clutch it as they walked. Both blushed slightly, but they were getting better at it. Aoi went to a different school on the far side of town, so there was no risk if they just went to Café Grandpa, so that was where they spent a lot of their time together.

It was not easy, but Chihiro had decided that she would try to make it work. If it would, she had no idea. But someday he would be free, and she hoped to know enough about him to be able to still want to see him when this was over. After all, how many girls got two chances to go after their first love?

And besides, sometimes, you just had to say to hell with the logical choice.

 **(End the reconditioned 3)**


	4. Chapter 4

_The World God Only Knows: All the Kings Horses…_

 _By: The 483_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the The World God Only Knows Franchise._

 _ **Spoiler Alert: Warning: Light to mild spoilers for the Anime may be included herein.**_

 _ **Trying to get something out. Been just… completely unable sicne the release of Heavensward. (So much grinding) but I've rewatched all the the World God only knows, along with a few other titles, been to an expo, and need to do something, so I'll try with this, because I just enjoy this series so very much.**_

 **All the Kings Horses…**

Chihiro did not quite know what the proper analogy for what she was witnessing was. It put her in mind of a group of predators fighting over a kill. Ambush predators, in a few cases, as two of them were already in the Café, waiting for him. She was somewhat pleased that Elsie had not gone far, so it looked like she had entered with her.

She had not really… told anyone that she and Katsuragi were… doing whatever it was they were doing. Possibly, it could be called dating, but it was unlike any dating she had ever seen on television or read about. But, it gave her a feeling that was hard to describe. Something like, being happy to the point of her heart bursting, but with an odd sort of heavy sadness at the same time. But the reason behind it was just beyond her grasp. She shook her head, and lifted the mug of coffee to her lips. She finished the paper she was reading, and flipped the page, before having to adjust the binder clip to a better angle. Two questions plagued her as she was reading.

Why the hell would he keep these notes, and why the hell could she not stop reading them? It was like some morbid curiosity was easting at her even since they had showed her some of the materials that were kept on prior conquests. She boggled at the extensiveness of the records he kept. She was about half way through TakaharaAyumi, and was amazed by the amount of set up he did, even more so that his re-conquest of her, about three months ago. The profile of her was quite complete, so at least it could not be said that he did not know his targets.

She didn't know yet if she would read her own when she got to it, and was a bit relieved and a bit irritated that there were four more girls to go through before her turn came. She sighed, and took a sip of her empty coffee. She pushed back her chair, and rose, moving to the counter. Elsie was behind it, sweeping at the moment, and Chihiro refilled her own cup. She was not allowed to pay for what she consumed, beverage wise, he status having been upgraded from "customer" to "permanent guest" after her first visit, almost a month prior. She tried to protest this, but it was difficult to argue with Mrs. Katsuragi when her eyes flashed and she looked less like a mother and more like the biker she used to be.

Returning to her table, she cast a glance at the six sided war going on in the corner. Loudly. At least this time, there were no other customers, and Elsie had relieved her "mother" of the watch for the night.

"I have told you all, multiple times. He belongs to Tsukiyo." The small, porcelain doll said from its seated position in front of the blonde girl who was nursing a small cup of tea and watching with fixed interest. With her odd duality with the goddess she was hosting, she was one of the two who did not often become possessed by their goddess when such sparring matches took place. The other, her best friend, caught her eye, and gave her a look of pity that hurt her and made her feel guilty and ashamed of the "secret" she was keeping. She really needed to tell Ayumi.

"He is what she desires, so he is what she shall have." The doll continued, pointing a pair of scissors like a sword at her most energetic opponent, who Chihiro was actually surprised to see. How the Idol had managed to get a Saturday night off, she could not guess. The mocking smile Apollo was returning, had the flavor of Kanon, but was far too cynical for the girl to ever wear in her own capacity. "Besides, we were the first to be awakened, so we have seniority in the matter.

"Using that logic, Vulcan, Diana would hold that, as she has been awake since the summer school break." A lazy voice said from Ayumi's vicinity. Mercury rarely took possession of Ayumi, preferring the lower effort of remaining incorporeal. The doll, Luna, could not change her face, but the narrowed eyes were in clear evidence in the hissing rasp of her voice.

"Very well, then. As an eminent example of the rare beauty to occasionally make itself manifest in this world, it is only just that Tsukiyo gets the dirty little man." The disdain she held in her voice made it hard to tell that she was trying to take possession of Katsuragi. Apollo clicked her tongue.

"Now, Vulcan. While your host is definitely pretty, it is all in how you'd measure such things, isn't it?" She scolded boisterously. "I mean, after all, if you look at my Kanon, a good chunk of this land mass certainly view her as quite the object of beauty. Not to mention that, if you take into account another set of criteria, she outpaces the rest of you save maybe Mercury." Apollo made a gesture that left what she was referring to without doubt.

"True." Said the ethereal voice from the other goddess. "If that were the determining factor, I think we might be out ahead. He has already seen us naked, after all." Ayumi, who had only faintly been following the conversation turned suddenly bright ready, and snatched up her own tea, with the tiny reflected goddess in it.

"Mercury, shut up!" She whispered angrily, and then downed the drink in one gulp. She could feel the goddesses smile in the back of her head, and she decided to leverage the embarrassment by casting a death glare at Katsuragi.

"Hmph. Those who view this as solely a battle of physical assets cannot compare to compatibility that Tsukiyo possesses with the dirty man."

"Right you are, sister. Personality compatibility is important as well." Mars now chipped in. Now that she was fully awakened, Yui was…less intense then she had been when their traits were mixing before she awoke. While not as shy as she had been, she preferred, in times like these, to let the more assertive goddess take the fore during these round tables. "Which is why we are the best fit. I am the goddess of war, and he is the god of conquest. A perfect match. My Yui is an Alpha, and he is a clear beta. We are a perfect match."

The last of the goddesses, Minerva, who was hosted by the tiny library girl… uh… crap, what was her name… oh, yes, Shiori, was also incorporeal, and really never added anything unless one of the other girls seemed to actually be making some headway in conflict. Chihiro didn't even think she had ever heard this girl speak, and she certainly didn't seem inclined to, a large book propped in front of her as the debate raged around her.

For Keima's part, pinned as he was between the tiny Shiori and taller Mars, looked as if he'd like to do nothing better than die in the fire Ayumi was clearly whishing his way.

Chihiro, surprisingly to herself, was not jealous of him being fought over like the last of a bargain piece of meat. After all, the goddesses did need to congregate with each other from time to time, and the girls involved didn't not get along. In actuality, Chihiro, Ayumi, and Yui had been seeing Kanon quite a bit more then regularly, since she had crashed in and guest starred during their set at the Mai-high festival. In fact, after the set, when everything had caught up with her, Kanon was the most vigorous one trying to calm and comfort her when she had just completely broken down sobbing. Once that storm had abated, Kanon had hugged Chihiro close, and thanked her for helping to save her. This have befuddled Chihiro, who had, at the time, had no idea what she was talking about. But once she was fully versed in this who goddess thing, a week or two ago, it made sense.

She briefly wondered why she didn't worry about them. Perhaps it was that she figured that if she revealed that her and Keima were… together, that they would likely cease the attempt at romantically involving themselves with him. Or it could have been that she was positive that Keima wanted nothing to do with that nonsense. His priorities remained the desire to play games, finish with the Loose Souls, play games, avoid the real world, play games, and now, a tiny little pocket labeled "Chihiro" with a subsection: (panic.) That caused her to smile to herself, because they were both in the same boat, there.

Keima knew how to get a girl to like him and confess. Chihiro knew how to chase after any guy that caught her attention. Now this part, what to do after confessions lead to a relationship… they were both throw into the deep end of a pool that neither of them knew how to swim in. Add into that his need to keep collecting souls by kissing _other_ women, and the whole thing seemed destined to fail. Miserably. But Chihiro had made the decision that those other girls didn't count. He was doing that because if he didn't, it was curtains for himself and Elsie. She could live with that, for he didn't actually fall for any of them, it was routine for him at this point. And she had already had three chances to test her feelings on this, just in the two weeks they had been together. She was willing to work at it if he was, and that was the impression she got, under his surliness.

"Chihiro?" She opened her eyes at the urgency in the voice, and found herself almost nose to nose with Ayumi. She flushed and scooted backwards a bit, realizing she had fallen asleep, head resting propped up on her arm while she thought. A quick glance showed her that, unless inspected closely, they was nothing incriminating on the page she had open.

"What? Sorry, Ayumi. Guess I dosed off." Her friend smiled guiltily, and shuffled her feet.

"No, it's okay. We've concluded the business we needed to meet for, for tonight, and we were heading home." Ayumi still felt guilty for her feelings. No matter how many time Chihiro told her not to worry about it, and that she was in the same boat, she felt bad for wanting something Chihiro had gone for fist, and been shot down, hard. Chihiro had also, so far, neglected to mention her own involvement on the night Mercury was awakened. Something she needed to rectify.

"Oh, did you want me to walk with you?" She asked, after a convenient yawn gave her the pause she needed to get her thoughts in line. She smiled and waved it off.

"No, it's fine. Yui's going to give me a ride. She told me the offer wasopen to you, too."

"Tell her thanks. But I am going to stay, finish my reading, or nap, whichever seems better, and probably help Ellie close up." Ayumi looked uncomfortable, like maybe she should have thought to offer Elsie help, as well. Chihiro, not wanting that, and feeling a pang of guilt about it, continued before she could think about it. "Say, busy tomorrow?"

"Hmmm… no… not that I can think of. Why, what's up?" Chihiro stretched trying to pop her back, before replying.

"I was wondering if you just want to hang out. I feel like we haven't in a while. Unless you have practice tomorrow."

"Nope. Forecast says it's supposed to rain in the early afternoon, and there is no meet coming up, so the captain told us to just take the day off. Anything in particular?"

"No. Maybe just veg at my house, watch some movies, maybe go out for lunch."

"Alright, sounds good. I'll call you in the morning. Have a good night, Chihiro, I'll see you tomorrow!" She waved, looking happy, at least, as Chihiro returned the wave and smile, want watched her jog to the front door which Yui was holding open. She surveyed the already clean shop, the only anomaly the slumped over and drained looking Katsuragi. She gathered up the sheaf of paper, clutched it to her chest, and took her dished to Elsie before walking over, and taking a vacant chair.

"Having fun reaping what you sow?" She asked, pleasantly. She took the strangled groan he emitted as a negative. She thought about it, then patted him on the shoulder before moving about, pushing in chairs and wiping tables while Elsie worked cleaning up the behind the counter area and washing the remaining dishes. When she turned around, Keima was deeply involved with his PFP, and looking, for the first time this evening, at ease. She supposed it was that same for him as a dog wagging its tail; simply a sign that all was normal. She left him to it while they cleaned, He had earned a respite for what he had sat through so far. Elsie and she were finished just before 9, and killed the main light, though it was not expected that anymore customers would arrive. The shop was mainly a daytime establishment, and having no one come after about 7 was not unusual. Elsie locked the door, Keima rose, and the proceeded into the house to retire for the night.

"If you do not mind, I will go and take a bath now, Chihiro." Keima stated with utmost lethargy.

"No. It's fine. I imagine it was a particularly stressful day." He sighed deeply.

"No more so then any other time all the Goddesses have gathered together here since Vintage was defeated." Chihiro pouted and puffed out her cheeks, casting a mean look at him.

"Oh? And watching your girlfriend kiss another boy had nothing to do with it?" She said hotly. She wasn't going to bring it up, she had wanted to play it cool. And, she wasn't sure girlfriend was the correct term, but she was still nervous and felt slightly guilty. Keima looked at her like the thought had never crossed his mind, and was startled she could think it.

"What? No. Why would it? That boy was nothing but a poor grade of side character, only there to add another event to flesh out the route of the…" He paused on the cusp of saying "conquest," but that wasn't correct. He wasn't conquering Chihiro, but he could still raise her affection stats, even though there was no long a concrete goal to reach anymore. "Um… relationship, I guess. I really don't know much about what goes on after this point. But that boy does not enter into it. He doesn't count." She glared at him, her cheeks slightly red. He cocked a brow and suddenly looked worried. "What?" He edged in nervously.

"Do you know a word that describes feeling irritated and flattered at the same time? Cause I really need one." She smiled when he didn't looked relived, and then he calmed. She had just gotten a look at the innermost Katsuragi again. He really couldn't read the situation confidently, if he had never seen (or more accurately, played) it before. She waved him away. "Go ahead, go on. Since it is the weekend now, and I told my parents I would be at Elsie's house today, I don't have to be home until around 11."

"Very well. I will try not to tarry." He said, and moved deeper into the house. Chihiro watched him leave with a light half smile. The idiot could be really cute when he was being sincere and sweet, if one knew what that looked like, coming from him. As much as he proclaimed his distaste for the real world, he was not hateful about it. Sitting and letting the Goddesses fight over him for an hour or so whenever they felt the needed to gather, showed that he wasn't completely uncaring about the girls that played host to them. But, as far as she was concerned, he was hers, so they would have a fight on their hands, if they tried anything.

That thought triggered a panic reflex, as she realized again that she had to tell Ayumi what she had done/was doing. But, with a momentous act of will, she forced it away into the "panic about it in the morning" box, and went to see if Elsie had something she could do while she waited for Keima to return.

 **(End 4)**

 **Trying to put out little parts here and there, but should have to many. I just enjoy this show so much, and want to seed in some little cute things, as I find it so hard to do elsewhere. And that means I needed a scene with the scissor wielding doll Luna. So much fun.**


	5. Chapter 5

_The World God Only Knows: All the Kings Horses…_

 _By: The 483_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the The World God Only Knows Franchise._

 _ **Spoiler Alert: Warning: Light to mild spoilers for the Anime may be included herein.**_

 _ **Trying to get something out. Been just… completely unable sicne the release of Heavensward. (So much grinding) but I've rewatched all the the World God only knows, along with a few other titles, been to an expo, and need to do something, so I'll try with this, because I just enjoy this series so very much.**_

 **All the Kings Horses…**

 **5**

Chihiro was actually a little relieved that Keima was going to be elsewhere for a while. She tried not to let it show, but she was definitely in way over her head on this one. The last time she had been in this house she had…well, she had not been happy, to put it mildly. So, it was a little surreal, now, sitting on the couch, looking around nervously, not fidgeting only because she had her hands jammed between her thighs and was sitting on them. She had already made a wee bit of an ass of herself, when Elsie had retired to her room, and Chihiro, remembering when she had visited Keima when he was ill, saw her going into what she thought of was _his_ room, questioned her on that. Elsie had set her straight, in her normal, sweet, utterly oblivious way. That room was _hers_ , and Keima had only borrowed it for the "sick visit event." He was unable to use his own that week, because Kanon lay in his bed. She had flared up slightly at this, until Elsie had finished the thought, including the fact that she was unconscious, with an assassin's blade sticking out of her. Trying to keep everything straight was stressful, and she found that maybe she was just a teensy bit jealous. She wanted to work on that, otherwise, she was going to have a very tiring relationship.

The television was on, and she was otherwise left to her own devices. She took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. She had no excuse for being so nervous. She didn't know why she was, really, either. Usually, she only recognized two states when dealing with Katsuragi: heartsick, and irritated, in severity from mild to want to choke. He was so adept at jumping her emotion from on frame to another, she would often get tired in an extended attempt at conversation.

She was forced to assume it was part her own mind, imagining (futilely) what might happen while they were alone, and part guilt over, well, mostly Ayumi, but partly for Yui too, and maybe a little for Kanon. They were not close close, but they had become friends as of late, and Kanon was a nice girl, when her more assertive Goddess was not in command. Apollo was in many ways very much like her host, just much more boisterous and loud. It was almost as Kanon's stage personality had come to life, only multiplied. The real Kanon was oddly shy and reserved. If, of course, one did not include the time she had confessed to Katsuragi in the middle of class. But she had been scared, and people do crazy things when they are afraid.

This then sent her train of thought in the direction of, was it normal to spend so much time thinking about other girls that were interested in ones boyfriend? She shook her head. Now was not the time to go there, now was the time to worry about what she would be doing when Katsuragi came out of the bathroom. They had already kissed, apparently twice, before they were dating, but she had a creeping suspicion that he didn't give any concern to her personally that first time. It had taken a long, long sleepless night to decide that she could forgive this alleged offensebecause he seemed to be genuine in his affections now ...not that she was a good judge of that. But, she chose to believe, rather than the alternative of already being a bitter old woman already. Because she HAD asked Elsie if there was anything else wrong with her, be that ghost, spirit, devil, demon, or goddess possession, and Elsie had given her a firm negative. She still believed that Elsie would not lie to her, and if she did, that it would be fairly obvious.

It then suddenly dawned on her that she should have asked to use the bathroom _before_ Katsuragi went to bathe, because she noticed a heavy pressure below her stomach that consisted of the four cups of coffee she drank while reading. It was not quite to the point where she need chase up Elsie and ask if there were another bathroom she could use, but it served to distract her mental tail chasing. ...right up until she landed on the fact that she was going to hang out with Ayumi tomorrow, and she needed to either A): pretend like she was not being a sneaky bitch and dating Katsuragi after making it clear that she wanted little more from him then for him to expire, or B):tell Ayumi that she was being a sneaky bitch and the rest of the previous option.

In her mind, neither option had an outcome that gave good odds on them still being as good of friends (or likely even still friends) when it was over. Yes, both of them had been lying to each other since Mercury was awakened, saying that neither of them held any desire to be with him. But it was the type of lie two friends who loved each other told each other, knowing full well that they were lying, and the other knew it, because they cared enough about each other to not want to hurt the other.

She grunted with frustration. Girl diplopacy was too damn complicated, even in one's own head. Sure, neither would have been surprised if the other suddenly came out and told the other they were dating Katsuragi (except the part where they would be surprised Katsuragi was dating _anyone_ ). But honestly, in the bottom of her heart, Chihiro always thought that if it happened, Ayumi would be the one telling _her_ that. And sure, she could see herself getting biter and eventually fighting with Ayumi over it, but getting hurt that way seemed a whole lot better then her hurting Ayumi like this. She wished mightily that she could still in good conscience blame Katsuragi for this, but he did not get to choose who got a goddess/spirit in them.

She was distracted momentarily when she heard something rustle, followed by a female voice and a tinny soundtrack. She turned, and found Katsuragi coming into the room, in a white silk shirt and lounging pants, pulling his PFP out of a Ziploc bag.

"Done?" She asked, and he nodded. "Good. May I use the restroom?"

"Sure." He answered absently, and continued devoting himself to his machine, until a few seconds later when he felt her glare burning a hole in the side of his head. "Oh, down the hall, second door on the left, it's open." She nodded once, and did not sprint, but moved quickly. When she finished washing her hands, she had decided that she would tell Ayumi the truth, whatever the consequences, and set a reminder on her phone, in the likely event she tried to wuss out tomorrow.

She reemerged into the living room both physically relived, and emotionally stressed and depressed. She was tired. Katsuragi was on the couch, the lights low, playing his game with the T.V. still on. She took a seat next to him, and he did not react. A few minutes passed. Five minutes passed. Ten minutes passed. He was doing nothing but playing his damn game! And she didn't even know if she should get mad, because this was completely on par with what she had come to expect from him. Except for the vague feeling that he did not want her to go away and leave him alone. That was unusual. So, rather than allowing herself to become as angry as she wanted to, she came to the conclusion that, if they were to have any private interaction, she would have to be the one to initiate it. So, not sure if she was actually bold enough to do it, she reached out shakily for one of the pillows near the edge of the couch.

(...)

Keima was, as he so often was, considerably irritated. This in and of itself was not unusual, he was never _not_ irritated when he could not focus on playing his dating sims. But this time, the difference was that no one was actively interrupting his focus. He could feel his lack of attention radiating from Chihiro, sitting rigidly next to him, like a malevolent aura she was extending. This irritated him further, because simple observation showed conclusively that she was not doing anything that would disturb him. Quite out of character. Maybe that was it. Her lack of abrasive action or vocalization, being so unlike what she was usually like, was what was bothering him. Wait... her not bothering him was bothering him? It felt accurate, but sounded wrong... That line of thought would mean that he _wanted_ her to be bothering him. Was this a latent masochistic urge brought on by the punishment he had been steadily enduring since the whole, Lost Souls thing started? No, no. He did not get annoyed when Haqua was not abusing him. He got down right sour whenever he had deal with Nora without a buffer character.

Preliminary findings seemed to indicated that he wished for, to some mild extent, to be bothered, but solely by Chihiro. Could that be what it was like to actually like a _real_ girl? And if so, how the hell do real people deal with that crap? It was ridiculous!

His train of thought was cut off as something impacted his leg, and he looked down to find one of the brown couch pillows now laying on it, hanging over onto the couch cousin he sat on. This pressure was supplemented as Chihiro, acting almost like her hips were a hinge attaching her to the couch, slammed her head down on the pillow, facing the T.V. Hard enough to cause some pain in Keima's leg. He was so shocked, he couldn't even react, ( his second thought was, _is she ok?_ , right behind, _what the hell goes on here?_ ) He did not turn his head down to look at her, but almost strained his eyes trying to see what she was doing. He couldn't seem more than the side of her head, one ear sticking out of her mess of brown hair, almost glowing red in her embarrassment.

 _That is kind of cute._

The alien thought shot across Keima's mind like a searing arrow. He looked around, the thought being so foreign that he thought someone else had spoken it. The realization that the thought came from within his own cortex chilled him to the core. He had just had, as an honest gut reaction, thought of a _real_ girl as cute. He let his gaze rivet to the T.V. as a few minutes passed, and his heart rate began the attempt to return to normal. But equilibrium in this situation was not to be had.

"Katsuragi? Can I... hold your hand?" The words sounded almost as alien as his earlier thought. The voice was almost plaintive. Demure. Softly unsure. This was very... un-Chihiro. But at the same time, it was so Chihiro he didn't quite understand how both states could exist in tandem.

"S-sure." His voice was a croak. He watched, almost in awe, as his left arm, seemingly numb, snaked out, and lowered the hand to the general area where his addled mind thougt her hands were located. He didn't jump when the small, warm thing came up and gripped his own, but it was a near thing. A minute passed, and suddenly she squirmed, his resting arm uncomfortable over her side ribs. She managed to get a little more sweater in between it, padding the weight, and settled. A few seconds later, there was a contented sigh, and her ear, Keima's one barameter for the situation, began to return to flesh tone.

He found he could focus attention on his game again, and did not notice immediately that Chihiro had fallen asleep five minutes later.

 **End 5.**

 **Short, I know. But between computer trouble, and other things keeping me occupied, i figure some is better then none.**


	6. Chapter 6

_The World God Only Knows: All the Kings Horses…_

 _By: The 483_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the The World God Only Knows Franchise._

 _ **Spoiler Alert: Warning: Light to mild spoilers for the Anime may be included herein.**_

 **All the Kings Horses…**

 **6**

Keima was unusually aware of the time, for while he would undoubtedly be up until 2 or 3 a.m., not having more conquest work until Tuesday at lunch, but because of the warm, pleasently scented girl whose head was, minus a pillow, resting on his leg. He had the distinct feeling that he could feel her warmth bleeding through the pillow, and did not dislike the sensation he imagined. He was aware of the time, because she had said her curfew was 11, and he had no desire to accumulate more negative feelings with her. It was why, when 10:30 rolled around, he tapped her lightly on the shoulder. She did not awaken, but sleepily burrowed her face deeper in the pillow, he body retracting further into itself, trying to preserve sleep. He shook her a little more forcefully, and she stirred, the embrace of the sandman leaving her, and her brown eyes opened blearily. There was a moment of uncertainty, while she tried to figure out where she was, but Keima's fears were unrealized as she came full conscious, and did not have a violent reaction. She sat up, yawned and stretched.

"Oh, no. Sorry!" She said, when the yawn finished, and she looked distraught. "I didn't mean to fall asleep on you, on the first night we've actually gotten so time to spend together!" Keima adjusted his glasses, partly to hide his own fluster, he could still feel the warmth of her small hand in his own.

"Oh... uh... no... that is fine. I enjoyed it, as it were." Chihiro, still half asleep, missed the uncharacteristic stumble of his early words. She felt really sheepish. Keima could see this, and it was a situation he knew how to deal with. "Really. This is still part of the first non-scripted interaction I have had with a girl. I enjoyed it surprisingly much." He said on open befuddlement. Chihiro frowned.

"So you are saying, that you are confused because you enjoyed spending time with me?"

"Yes. It is perplexing. In the company of all of the others, I only get frustration and the feeling that I am going to be struck. With you tonight, I was nervous, but not displeased." She looked at him incredulously, and then sighed explosively, flopping back on the couch. She lay there, then had a realization, and adjusted her skirt to be sure it was draped so she wasn't flashing her panties.

"You honestly don't know what was wrong with what you just said, do you?" She asked, exasper-flattered again. He looked puzzled and a wee bit worried.

"I spoke poorly?" He asked, like a kicked puppy. Chihiro thought for a second he was playing her... but she did not recall him having a sense of humor.

"Yes, you did, but I got what you meant by it." She said, throwing her arm up over her face, and looking at him over the small mounds on her chest. It gave her a brief thought about what preferences in bust size Katsuragi held, but she could not recall him ever once responding to a sexual stimuli. Possibly he had when he had discovered he had Ayumi's panties, but... no, those were just a tool to him, leverage to get her to speak with him.

"He's saying he likes you!" A little voice whispered to them, and Chihiro, over a painful tightness in her stomach at the thought of the fact that SHE would be talking to Ayumi tomorrow, saw Elsie's leaning over the back of the couch.

"I know, Elsie. He's just not very good at it. But we'll work on it." They both ignored Keima, who had gone slightly red, and scowled at his little sisters interjection.

"Have a good nap?" She replied, pleasantly.

"I did, surprisingly enough. I didn't realize I was that tired. I guess playing with people's emotions is more strenuous then I thought. Though I guess it makes sense. Before now, I've been the one hoping to be liked, and that was exhausting. But I guess it is not easy from the other side, either." She blinked, then added. "Oh, I didn't mean that as a barb, Katsuragi. I know you don't do it because you want to, now."

"He really doesn't. It makes it all the more amazing that he can keep up this pace. Me, Haqua, Nora, and Ryu are hard pressed to keep up with all the work he does." Elsie replied with a bit of idol worship shading her tone. Thought she didn't realize that it was Keima's development of genuine attraction to Chihiro that spurred his drive to be done with the mess as soon as he could manage. For some reason she was unable to fathom, that triggered the realization that she did not know what time it was.

"Oh, crap! What time is it?" She said, after a furious look about did not reveal a time piece to her.

"Just before 10:30. I woke you so you wouldn't be late." Keima said with a hint of caution, not wanting to draw more attention then was necessary.

"Oh, thanks!" She said, rising and putting her feet to the floor, before give a mighty stretch that popped her back. "I suppose now is as good a time to head home as any. Better early then late, I guess."

"I'll walk you home." Keima stated, turning off his PFP and tucking it into a pocket. Unexpected, but it pleased Chihiro. She waved a goodbye to Elsie, and followed after him as he headed for the door.

The walk was uneventful, save that _he_ took her hand soon after they left. She enjoyed the walk, even though it was a little brisk out. She stopped just shy of being in line of sight of her house, pulling Keima to a halt unexpectedly.

"Chihiro? What is the matter?" He asked, as the circuits in his brain rapidly compiled a scenario based on the environmental data. Namely, she had pulled him to a stop, just out of sight of her house, in the semi darkness of a not out in the open suburban street. His logical brain told him she was about to kiss him goodnight, outside of where her parents could see, and he did not quite know how to feel about it. She didn't look up as she spoke.

"I..uh... I... Tomorrow. Tomorrow I am going to tell Ayumi we are seeing each other." She forced the words out, hoping that having someone who could call her on it make it easier to say when the time came. When he didn't reply, she looked up to see that he was in thought, his hand stroking his chin.

"Hmm... rational. But I don't see why you'd ask me for my approval of the matter. It is strictly between the two of you." He said airily. Chihiro almost growled in anger.

"I am not asking for your approval, idiot! And it is not strictly between us two! You really think the Goddess inside of Ayumi is going to be any more pleased then she is that I went behind her back like this?! Or that she is not going to inform all of the other Goddesses about it? I believe that makes it your problem too." She said, her fight whooshing out of her at the end, and the fatigue rushing back in. It's bad enough when your best friend likes your boyfriend, and did before you were open about it. But it is a whole other thing when Six divine beings and the girls they live in feel the same. Though, from what she had read, only really Kanon and the Library Girl...er... ah! Shiori! Chihiro really needed to work on remembering her name, could claim that their admitted feelings came out prior to Chihiro's.

"Hmm... you are right. They are not going to be pleased. I'll need to figure out how to keep that creepy doll from using her scissors." He nodded, though he could see much pain, physically in his future. He met her eyes now. "But that stabbing in he back... why do you feel that way?" She looked shocked.

"What? Not me, that's how she'll feel!" She said, worry lacing into her tone.

"I am sorry, but I do not see why that would be the case."

"Because, stupid! She liked you first! And she was the first girl you made fall in love with you! And she is still so hurt, knowing you only liked her because she had a goddess in her... and you didn't hear her voice when..." She stopped, noticing she was on the verge of tears, feeling his hand clap to her shoulder.

"No more." He said, and hugged her to him, trying to soothe her. This infuriated her, as did what he said next. "This is only what you are feeling. And projecting your feelings onto her won't help you. So, save this, and tell it to her, tomorrow, and..." **Wham!**

He was cut off as she slugged him, hard, and pushed him away, red in the face.

"What the hell! Of course that's how I feel! Ayumi is my best friend, and I have loved her a lot longer than I have you, you stupid jerk! If you'd ever had a real friend, one that you cared about, you'd know you'd feel sick for doing something to them that it would hurt you to have them do to you!" She yelled, panting slightly in the brisk April night. Her shaking fists were clenched at her hips. Katsuragi smiled up from where he had landed.

"That's better. That is a more in line with the behavior I am familiar with." He rose slowly, as Chihiro sighed angrily.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" She huffed.

"That now you are acting like the Chihiro I know. Mopey isn't in character. Chihiro surrendered mentally, feeling again that odd combination of irritation and flattery, and she deciphered his meaning, which was roughly concern at how she was acting.

"Okay, whatever. Thanks, I guess. Anyway, I need to go in, now, so... goodnight." She said with a brief smile, and ttook a step toward him. 8 seconds passed as she feverishly tried to figure out the proper action to take in this, as his body language was so blank he might have been a wall. She gave him a quick, tight hug, which he returned, and then she jogged around the corner and to her house. Unseen by her, he waited until she was inside the house before he turned, withdrew his PFP, and started back home, giving no thought yet to the prospect of 6 angry Goddesses and Girls he would meet at the next summit.

It was two hours later, and dozens of terrible "what-if" reactions imagined, that Chihiro, wide awake on top of the twisted covers of her bed let out a frustrated huff and bounced into a new position, punching her pillow in frustration. She was tired, and wanted so badly to sleep, but it alluded her. She knew she shouldn't have taken a nap, but had been lulled into it without noticing she had fallen asleep. With an explosive sigh, she flopped over again, cursing the clock that read 1:35, and the fact that she knew she would be awake at least another hour, tossing and turning, and worrying about the day to come.

 **End 6**


	7. Chapter 7

_The World God Only Knows: All the Kings Horses…_

 _By: The 483_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the The World God Only Knows Franchise._

 _ **Spoiler Alert: Warning: Light to mild spoilers for the Anime may be included herein.**_

 **All the Kings Horses…**

 **7**

Her breath came in short, fogging rasps, her padded sneakers thudding the ground with a satisfying feel as each stride carried her at around her top speed, which she now could maintain for almost half the track, a large improvement over this time last year. The fact that the shoes she were wearing, scuffed, dirty, well worn, and still holding together very well after almost a year of intense punishment, were the pair _he_ had given her she tried not to think about. Save what you will about the little loser, but he had good taste in shoes. That these were her favorites had almost nothing to do with the fact that he gave them to her. They were excellent. She just was happy that they had been a gift, was all.

She rounded the bend in the track, head down, shook the thought from her head, and sprinted flat out, approaching the close set hurdles, and starting her run, leaping each so quickly, it was almost reflexive, not enough time to think before each jump, just feeling the moment and throwing herself into it. At this pace, even trying to think about when to move would throw off her rhythm, which, of course she did, and clipped the top of the last hurdle, and send her in a wild, arm flapping slide as she tried to recover, before preforming a final spin and kicking the curb bordering the infield grass. She let the jar knock her down, and sprawled backward onto one of the soft, squishy foam pads that the vaulters used when they had practice.

She lay, panting heavily, watching her breath fog the cold, early spring air, as tiny droplets fell from the ugly grey clouds. She could move yet, exhausted after 3 hours of practice on the mostly deserted track. Track wasn't meeting today, but when one is trying to be a star athlete on the team, you had to practice and exercise even on the days off, which were even more scarce now that she was spending even more time with the band, as well. A dangerous endeavor, as it was awfully amazing to be on a stage like that, feeling the reactions of a crowd, all screaming to see you. It was like the high of winning on the track, but even more so.

When her breathing had slowed, and she felt she could move again, she lifted her arm, and noted that it had not been three hours, but nearly 4 and a half! She leap up, stumbled, recovered, and jogged toward the gates off the field as thunder rumbled in the far distance, and heavier drops began to fall. She was supposed to be at Chihiro's around noon, and she still needed to shower and change, and it was already 11:34! She waved to a few fellow track members, and picked up the pace. Chihiro had been acting odd lately, and after all that had gone down around the festival, she figured it probably had something to do with how she was still seeing Katsuragi here and there. She had been surprised that Chihiro had been at the Cafe Grandpa last night, though she didn;t thik Chihiro knew anything about the Goddesses or any of that non-sense. And it did make a kind of sense that she would go there. Keima's Mother did make the best coffee in town. And her tea was amazing as well.

Either way, she owed Chihiro some explanation on why she was still seeing a man she was supposed to hate. One that, while neither of them mentioned it, they both knew the other still loved him. So, she would figure out a way to justify herself, without revealing Mercury. She was half convinced normal people couldn't perceive Mercury, anyway. She only ever saw her in mirrors an such, and no one else save the other hosts seemed to notice. Well, and Katsuragi. He seemed to be able to talk to the image versions as well.

She grabbed her head in frustration, hardly noticing herself getting soaked. Why did this crap have to be so confusing!

(...)

"Hey, Chi! Sorry I'm late!" Ayumi said emphatically as she came to a stop in front of her friends house. It was almost 12:30 because it had started raining hard enough she couldn't run without getting soaked despite her umbrella. Chihiro smiled and waved it off.

"No problem, Ayumi. It was just a rough * _yawn*_ time I gave. Come on in." She held open the door, and let Ayumi come i after she closed and shook off her umbrella.

"Oh, but you were waiting outside for me." She said, hoping it didn;t sound suspicious. Chihiro was a little off, somehow. Ayumi couldn't help but noticed the dark rings under her eyes, or the slightly frazzled look to her hair. Chihiro chuckled slighty.

"I wasn't. Mom wanted me to check and make sure the trash bins lids were shut. She couldn;t remember if she left it open or not." She closed the door, and walked into her house slippers. "Go ahead and head up to my room. I made some snacks, I'll be right up." She said, and disappeared around the corner.

"See, Ayumi. You were just being paranoid. She's not mad at us." The small reflection of Mercury said from the face of an antique clock on the wall before the stairs. With the half closed as and listless air, she looked almost as tired as Chihiro.

"Something is still off." Ayumi said, kicking off her shoes, and proceding up the stairs to Chihiro's small room. It was amazing how much smaller it seemed with the addition of a guitar, a small amp, and the padded case crammed into a corner. Mercury appeared in the turned off TV, and Ayumi took a brief look around, it having been a while since she had been over, what with all the craziness following the festival. She noticed on the desk was a laptop computer, a portable disc drive, and a stack of CD-R's, with a few laying on the tabletop with the words "2-B Pencil's" and "Memories of My First Love." Written in Sharpie on it. Not surprising. They had, after the festival, be a surprising number of requests for a copy of their debut song. In roughly...8 cases, this was because someone really liked their performance. In the most part, it was because Kanon had sung with them. But they had, a while after, (when Chihiro could think about it without crying, though no one mentioned that to her) they recorded a cut of it, and Chihiro had been burning CD's for people who asked, occasionally noting that Kanon did not appear in this version. Some still wanted it, because it was free.

Next to the computer was a bound composition notebook, Chihiro's song binder. She carried it with her all the time, jotting down little ideas and such whenever they struck. Ayumi was pleased as she sat on the floor at the tiny table to see how much Chihiro was into the Band. She was always so sharp and cheery, but never really had any drive, even chasing boys around seemed halfhearted, mostly.

Chihiro walked in, one hand full with a large bowl of popcorn, the other a few bags of other, less then healthy snacks, and kicked at the door, shutting it loudly.

"Sorry!" She called out, and then set the stuff onto the table before flopping down herself, into an awkward silence. Ayumi worked up the nerve to speak first.

"Hey... Chi. You okay?"

"Hm? What? Yeah, I am fine, why?" She answered almost too quickly. Ayumi looked pained.

"Listen, Chi, about last night. I know it was a surprise to see me there, with... Katsuragi. But I wasn't there because I wanted to be." Mercury snorted in her Television set, leaning down like she was resting her arms on the frame. Chihiro's eyes flicked that way, almost like she had heard it. "There is just something I have to do, from time to time, that I cannot get out of." Chihiro did not meet her eyes, and looked embarrassed.

"Actually, Ayumi... that is kind of what I wanted to talk to you about. Both of you." Mercury looked curious for the first time Ayumi had noticed, but she her stomach had dropped so fast, she didn;t have the air to reply.

"Both of you?" Mercury said to herself.

"Yes, both of you." Now Ayumi was surprised to the point of near panic.

"What? I... uh... you... are... wait, what?" She said, reeling. Could Chihiro see/hear Mercury?

"I know about you and Mercury." She said, rubbing the back of her head. "The night of the Festival, while we were on stage, like it was in a dream, I saw you, and Yui and Kanon with big, fluffy wings while we were playing, along with the other three girls in their Goddess forms." She said quickly, noting how insane it sounded as she said it. Ayumi was shocked speechless, and even Mercury was looking surprised.

"B-but Chi... how do... you..."

"Um... well, you see... that nigh, before the Mai-High Festival... when I told you Katsuragi was playing you... I knew that... because I was with Elsie's sister Haqua and their friend Nora" (In the Katsuragi Household, Haqua looked up from her book as she felt a cold shiver run down her spine, as if someone had said something terrible) "watching the whole thing unfold." Ayumi slowly turned bright glowing red.

"You mean.. you saw the whole thing with the..." She couldn't finish, but Chihiro nodded.

"You mean when he agreed to take you as his bride." Mercury added, adapting far faster than her host.

"Mercury! Shut up!" She said in a voice cracking whisper. She then turned to Chihiro.

"Chi! I am so sorry! After how bad he was to you, I still wanted him to love me... even though I knew he was incapable, I didn't care."

"No, Ayumi, it's fine. Really, I know how easily he got you the first time, and thought I can't remember it, I know he got me, too."

"Yeah... I was kind of... there when you confessed to him."

"Oh, yes, that was... wait, WHAT!?" Chihiro forgot her own woes at hearing this. "I need an explanation of that." She said almost acidly. So, Ayumi spent a few moments detailing what happened that day when Katsuragi was sick, and both girls came to visit him. Chihiro saw red, not because she was mad at Ayumi, but she was pissed that Katsuragi hadn't told her. But, she also remembered who she was going to be mad at, and decided she would ask Haqua for the papers pertaining to that time before she condemned him for it. And she had to clamp down hard on her jealousy, because she would not survive if she got jealous, and she would not allow herself to be bitter at Ayumi. She would NOT. But such concerns would wait.

"Okay, okay. I understand that. We were both after the same thing, and we both kind of had the same idea. Besides, I would bet her was playing us both, anyway. If it was anyone else that would have heard me then, I would have been mortified. Now, before we get all worked up again, let me fill you in on all I know."

And with that, Chihiro started relating all that had happened with her. Her apparent first conquest, when she had her first memory of interacting with him, her side of the jumbled mess of the Goddess hunt, up to where they got together. Chihiro was proud of her self. She was not crying half as hard as she thought she'd be.

"Aymui... I am so sorry, but I am ... dating Katsuragi, I think." She finished with tears down her face, and sniffles at the pauses. She was terrified of what Ayumi would say, but she also felt a great weight of her chest for getting out what she'd been feeling over the last few weeks. She jumped slightly when she felt Ayumi give her a hug.

"Calm down, Chi. Please." She then moved back, holding Chihiro's shoulders, and inspected her closely. "Why would you do that, after the way he treated you? I mean, I understand having a crush on him, you know I do, but why? And more over, what does _he_ want from you?"

Ayumi was shaking slightly with the suppression of the feelings she felt at the moment. Her heart had sunk when Chihiro had said that she was dating Katsuragi, because, if she were at all honest with herself, she wanted to date him, bad. And, Chihiro came to her, knowing that full well. Ayumi's own fears about her being seen with Katsuragi had long since vanished, and her new, overriding sense of purpose was a mix of being crushed, and a dire need to "talk" to Katsuragi. "Talk" meaning anything from interrogate, threaten, punish, punch, or kick, in any or all configurations. She would probably be making a stop to "talk" to him on the way home this very night.

Chihiro sniffled, and wiped at the tears almost as if she were surprised to find them.

"I don't think he wants anything weird from me this time. I... knida ended up seeing him one night and he said he was sorry, and then walked away."

"He apologized? With no provocation? And did not wait to observe the results?" She said with enough skepticism that even Chihiro gave a wet chuckle.

"I know! But I am pretty sure it was genuine. He really seems ...not capable, but trying." She said, and then looked at Ayumi. "Are you mad at me?" Ayumi again looked surrprised.

"What? No I am not..." She then bit her lip, and looked unsure. She was happy that Chi had come right out to her and been honest, and she knew that if they wanted to continue to be this close, she needed to be honest as well. She took a deep breath. "For sure I am not happy about not being the girl he chose." She said, and was sincere in her note of sorrow. But she looked up, and smiled. "But you don't have to worry. I would never hate you for something like this." She hugged Chihiro again.

"Yeah, you should be worried about what will happen when Vulcan finds out." Mercury said, her head resting on her arms, looking like she was asleep.

"You are okay with this, too?" Chihiro asked the Goddess directly. She managed to convey a shrug without moving.

"He managed to hook Diana, who is very uptight, so he must have his points, but I am still getting strong off the love Ayumi feels, not just from him, so I don't mind as long as she is okay with it." She gave a sleepy smile. "I just like hanging around with my sisters and the other hosts aren't so bad."

"Right." Ayumi said, somewhat skeptically. "Anyway, I don't hold it against you. So don't you worry about that. In fact, I was terrified that you were mad at me for being at Katsuragi's house, after all I went through with him, and just wanted me here to yell at me for being an idiot."

"That's crazy!" Chihiro said, flabbergasted. "I've just been off lately, because I was sure you'd hate me when you found out about this!" Ayumi shook her head and smiled.

"Well, now you don't have to worry about me anymore. Yui might have some words with you, but I cannot predict that one. But enough of this for now. You seem to know a whole lot about what has been going on with everyone the last couple of months. I want to hear about that. What was that you were saying about Elsie being Kanon for a week, and our Elsie being someone named... Haqua?"

 **End 7**


	8. Chapter 8

_The World God Only Knows: All the Kings Horses…_

 _By: The 483_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the The World God Only Knows Franchise._

 _ **Spoiler Alert: Warning: Light to mild spoilers for the Anime may be included herein.**_

 **Howdy. Was lots of feedback this time. Not used to that. The short answer for the inconstancies and why parts seem choppy is that lots of time passes between writing chapters, and I leave large swaths of time often between even sentences. So, there can be weirdness due to that. Also, thanks you,** _ **Xelllos540**_ **for pointing out places I need to clarify. I went back, and edited out that line. Also, I will try and clarify Haqua's position. I aam most way through the Manga, and rewatched the show again, and I never saw them clear up who she was with Mari, so, I am leaving in the belief that she is Illegitimate Daughter #2. Thanks again for pointing out what I need to fix, much appreciated. Also, now that I have finished the Manga, I will be salting small details here and there, but not following it with any strictness.**

 **All the Kings Horses…**

 **8**

Mari Katsuragi flipped her head, the long, damp mane of bright orange hair, longer then her biker days, flowing like liquid light as she gathered it expertly up, and ran the heavy brush through it a few more times. She almost never got to take her evening shower this early, but with the Haqua visiting for a few days. She was still not 100 percent certain on just how Haqua fit in. She was older then Keima, that was for sure, old enough to possible have been from before her and Keiichi had first hooked up, as it were. And Elsie... She seemed like a younger sister, easily. But, at the same time, Elsie had mentioned that she and Haqua were classmates of the same year in their previous school. But, they had not lived together before Elsie had come home and moved in. Or had they? It narrowed down into that they were essentially the same age, possibly twins, not identical? They certainly looked similar enough to be sisters. And if Haqua was still living with her mother, and she was also Elsie biological mother, why had Elsie been so adamant about moving in here?

Mari shook her head, and continued to examine her youthful features as she brushed at her hair. In all, she supposed she shouldn't complain. Keiichi continued to swear up and down that he had not once cheated on her, and if both girls had been planted before Keiichi managed to make her see that he was the man she wanted, and put her bike away for good, there was technically no real foul involved. There was a six month period between when they had met and started dating when he could have sown his wild oats and it was none of her business. It could not have been after that, for Keima got his start a week after they started dating, and she was a mere three months gone when he proposed, and she agreed to marry him, he not learning that Mari was pregnant until she really started to show another month later.

Keiichi was good, she had to admit. She had not been easy to bed, when she was a biker, and Keiichi had managed in an amazingly short amount of time, which she never regretted. And more and more, especially now with all his little girlfriends, Keima was starting to show the charm his father seemed to be able to exude so effortlessly.

So, Mari choose the explanation of this confusing mess that netted her two step daughters that she had no trouble loving as if they were her own flesh and blood. Elsie was possible the ideal daughter, so friendly and polite, always so helpful around the house, and she had even started working in the cafe. She was so much of what Keima was not... but no, she was not mad about how Keima was turning out. He did seem to be easing off the games somewhat, and was even almost human, sometimes.

And Haqua, she was not around too much, but she had the air of success about her, and was unceasingly polite and helpful too, that Mari had no issues allowing her to stay over a few days whenever she wanted. She reported that it was nothing bad with her own mother (who was actually her Buddy, Yukie, posing as a stand in, when needed) butt a desire to spend more time with Elsie and Keima. She thought she detected that she might have a minor crush on Keima, for some reason, but she would keep her eye on that. Otherwise, she was a delight to have around on the occasions she decided to stay, and was always welcome. In fact, it had been her and Elsie, taking over the slow, Sunday night business that allowed her to shower and relax tonight.

She heard a knocking at the front door, admired her hair one last time, left it free, and moved to answer the door, knowing the girls were in the Cafe,, and Keima would not answer it. She opened it, and was mildly surprised to find a brown haired girl smiling up at her.

"Hello." She said, curiously.

"Good evening, Mrs. Katsuragi. Is Keima home?" Mari recognized the girl as one of that group from the previous night. She was one of the seven that had been hanging around her son lately. There were the two tiny ones, the blonde with the doll, and the shy looking one with black hair. Then there was the tall one who dressed masculine, and had the air of the upper class, and that famous one that Elsie liked so much. Tenri-chan was often around, and that was nice, she had always been fond of Tenri. She could have straightened Keima out, had she been a bit more assertive. Then there were the two brunettes. The one who was smiling sunnily up at her now was the cuter of the two.

"Hello, Mrs. Katsuragi. Is Keima available?" She thought about it for a few seconds.

"Well, he is in his room, presumable playing his games. So I a nott sure if available would be a word for it."

"Oh, I am sure he can make time. Would you please ask hi to step outside to meet me, please?" She asked, her face still the stiff, overly cheerful smile. But the air around the girl seemed less then gennial, though she could not put her finger on why.

"I will ask. Who should I tell him is asking?"  
"Just one of Elsie's band mates. I have a feeling if you told him which, he would not come, not wantig to deal with a real girl, and all of that." Mari sighed heavily. This girl understood the trouble she had with her son. She instantly took a liking to her.

"I'll get him out here. Just a moment." She smiled back at the petty girl, and closed the door, knocking on Keima's as she got to it. "Keima, there is a pretty little brunette here to see you. She says she's in the Band with Elsie. She's waiting outside for...you..." She paused surprised, as the door opened before she finished talking. It was a first. Inside of his room was dark, his tv's not on. "You're not playing your games?" She asked, skeptical puzzlement keeping her from being pleased about this.

"Not tonight, no. I am finishing troubleshooting a few routes I will need later in the week, trying to force some events so that I might have Saturday afternoon to myself." He said flatly, closing his door and walking past the stunned woman. "And no, I am not sick." He said, countering the statement before she could make it. Mari could but stare after him. Her son, behaving as a human would was slightly shocking to her.

(...)

Keima had no doubt as to who it was that was waiting for him outside. All the facts added up, and the quick turnaround time fitted Ayumi's personality. As did the blow that me him as he exited the house, closing the door behind him. His first coheisive thought after his mind slotted itself back into place as he faced the rolling grey clouds flat on his back was, _when did Ayumi learn Falcon Punch?_ His chest hurt from the contact, and he massaged it as the red face appeared in his visual range.

"You... bastard..." She breathed heavily, snorting it out almost like a cartoon bull. HE had never seen such fury from her before, and he, for once, could sympathize. But he was surprised at her next words. "I know you are scum, Katsuragi. The worst man I have ever met. And I know, that what you did to us, was not something you wanted to. But this... this is... how could you do this to her, again?" She was actually dripping a few rage tears. This stopped Keima's train of thought.

"Wait... her? Her who? Aren't you mad about me not choosing you...OW!" She slugged him again, her angry noise lost under his own pained exhalation.

"Who else, you asshole! After how badly you treated Chi, now you've circled back around, and are Fucking with her again!? What the hell is wrog with you!" She shouted the last part. Now Keima was able to fit his mind back into a track, and knew how to behave. He fixed his askew glasses, and rose, his normal calm, emotionless face not willing to form, but a sorrowful one taking its place. He sat up, and dusted at the wet smears on his clothes.

"Ayumi, is no possible that I am not messing with her this time, but that I genuinely have affection for Chihiro."

"No it's not possible!" She barked. "After you were so derisive to her when she kissed you the first night of the festival. Do you have any idea how badly you hurt her? Oh, wait, this is your conniving ass we are talking about, so of course you know! You probably have it calculated out to a specific point value." Keima was quiet for a few seconds, waiting to see if she would continue.

"Ayumi, the night I needed you to kiss me on the Akanemaru, I promised I would explain myself to you later. Now, knowing that Mercury resides within you, and the danger posed by Vintige nullified, would you like me to explain this new situation to you? I cannot say that you will like it, but I at least hope it will let you believe that I am sincere in my desire to, at the very least, not cause any further sadness within Chihiro." Ayumi was suddenly torn between the desires to kill, explode, and find out what the hell he was talking about.

"Alright, you may try. But because you owe me. I still reserve the right to hurt you if I don't like what I hear." He grimaced, but knew it was the best he would get.

"Very well, shall we go into the Cafe? Haqua and Elsie may be able to corroborate some of what I say." The moved inside, as it began to sprinkle again, and grabbed a table near a wall, the place being mostly empty. Elsie was, as always, pleased to see a friend, and was working with Haqua to give Mari the evening to herself. Haqua, having put all her efforts behind Keima's brand off spirit capture, didn't have a lot to do now that she was only running support and not active investigations with her buddy, so she liked to spend time with Elsie. Her fruitless and irksome crush on Katsuragi didn't help.

"Alright, so, in a few sentences, this whole thing started when I received a letter, challenging me to capture a heroine. On the internet, my specialty of being able to conquer any dating sims heroine has earned me the title of "God of Conquest." What this email was, however, was a trap, and I unknowing signed a contract with New Hell, partnering me with Elsie, and making it so that I have to capture all of the loose souls that escaped Hell en masse ten years ago, and took up residence in the hearts of people in Majima City." The face Ayumi was making equal parts skeptical, and "just how stupid do you think I am?" He continued.

"You, Kanon, Shiori, Chihiro, Tsukiyo, and Yui, were among the girls I had to fill the void in the heart with love. But, unbeknownst to us, the spirits that attached themselves to you, had parasites attached to them, using the loose souls as camouflage while they slept after they sealed away the evils of old hell, and regained their lost power."

"Those "Parasites" were us." Mercury said unenthusiastically from inside the cup of coffee that Elsie had just brought over.

"Aww, that's not nice! They aren't parasites! They're Goddesses!" Elsie said, frowning at her brother. "They needed to shroud themselves to keep the evils that would destroy them while they slept from finding them. And they woke because they gain power form the love their host received and feels, like the old demons did off hate and fear!" Ayumi kept silent, but left her skeptical face in place. This was, in part, mostly the same as the stuff Chihiro had lightly recounted to her earlier. It sounded even crazier then what Chihiro had said, and she would not have believed it, were it not so very evident that Mercury was not a creation of her imagination.

"Whatever you want to call them, I do not care. Anyway, Diana, who uses Tenri as a host, told me that there was trouble, and that I needed to help her find her other five sisters. It was not until Kanon confessed to me during last terms final exams, that I had a data set that would allow me to figure out who the Goddesses were resident in. But I was too late to act effectively. Apollo appeared, able to manifest because of Kanon's confession, and I realized that she could remember the time we spent together because of the Goddess in her heart, restoring the memories that lay sealed there.

"So you really did date Kanon." Ayumi said, gloomily.

"No. I _conquered_ her."

"Okay, so what do you mean, that the Goddess unsealed memories?" She shot back with an angry look." He looked quizzically back at her.

"Chihiro didn't tell you about that when she told you the rest of the story?" he asked. Ayumi glared harder, realizing that of course this irritating man would have guessed that Chihiro would fill her in. Truthfully, Keima had not been 100 percent sure that Ayumi had gotten some story from Chihiro, but he had made the conscious decision to never doubt the strength of their friendship again. He had done so during Ayumi's second conquest, and it had nearly costt him the conquest.

"She told me some basics, I guess. But she said she hasn't gotten too far into it, and doesn't understand a lot of what you've told her." Keima could understand that. After all, with no Goddess, Chihiro had no memory of their first conquest. He had just been a stranger she sort of fancied until shortly before the finals.

"Ayumi, when did you start to remember the time we spent together as more than just normal school days?" She thought hard for a second.

"I guess... it was about midterm. Someone had mentioned my track shoes, after practice one day, and I looked down at them, and couldn't remember where I had got them or why I was suddenly so attached to them. Later that night it hit me, they were from you, a gift of support for my first big track meet of the year. Why?" He nodded, and ignored her question.

"And how long after that did you start to see and talk to Mercury?" She frowned, and thought again. Mercury answered from the depths of Ayumi's mug.

"I remember that. It was when she got out of the bath, about two days later. Screamed when I spoke. She ignored me for 3 whole days beforeshe would finally talk to me."

"I see." Keima said, rubbing his chin, and not noticing that Ayumi was red from both anger and embarrassment. "At the same time, you were still not sure why you felt some form of emotion other then derision for me, correct? Hmm, so, then you remember when Chihiro and I were fighting, correct?" Ayumi had to think again. She was dredging up things she'd rather not think about.

"Umm... yeah."

"You pulled me aside, after I was depressed that Chihiro saw me as the same as I saw her, meaning that she felt I was part of the _real_ world. And you told me that it made you uncomfortable to see us fighting. That was the first time I began to doubt that you girls actually forgot about me, like Elsie kept assuring me that you did.

"So, I was supposed to forget what you did with me?" She inquired, keeping her voice passive. Keima nodded with a look that seemed pleased that finally, somebody understood this important point.

"Yes! Until the Goddesses... let us say "hatched" within you five girls, each and every girl I conquered, lost all memory of the conquest. If you were to check with them, Mio, Kusinoki, and Miss Nagase and a handful of others would have no memory of my conquest of them. But that is irrelevent. Anyway, I was constrained in how much time I had to discover the Goddess hosts, because after Apollo materialized, she ran off, and was quickly stabbed by an assassin."

"What?!" Ayumi said, in actual shock. In part because a classmate was attacked, and in part because she actually liked Kanon, now that they had had a chance to spend some time together.

"Yes. She lay near death in my bed, because Haqua's magic was not sufficient, and neither was Diana's alone. So, using the people who were mad at me because Kanon confessed to me as indicators of potential remembrance of my previous conquest, I hunted the Goddesses."

"So... that was me and..." She asked, wondering who else had been open about it.

"First it was Chihiro, then you, then I met Tsukiyo, Shiori, and finally Yui. From there, I was able to winnow it down through forced events, until only you and Chihiro remained. You know the rest." He crossed his arms, and leaned back, watching her closely for reaction. She was silent for a full two minutes, lifting her mug to her face, and staring into it, almost like she was talking with Mercury, reflected inside of it.

"So, you had it narrowed down to one Goddess, and didn't know if she was in me, or Chihiro? But, you choose Chihiro as the likely host?" Katsuragi, to Ayumi's immense shock, looked genuinely remorseful. But at the same time, she knew she could not trust that this was not a display. Mercury whispered up at her quickly.

"You know it's not an act, Ayumi. He would not waste the effort unless it provided him with some edge. I think you know he's being sincere. Even I have noticed he's changed, lately." Ayumi frowned own at her, not wanting to admit it.

"Ah, yes. Do you remember when you came to visit me while I was sick? Well, I had decided I would pursue you as the candidate, so I called you, hoping you would come. But, Chihiro called shortly after I hung up with you, and I talked to her in a way I thought would make it so I would not have to deal with her until later. You saw how that worked, when she unexpectedly showed up. And when she confessed to me, I thought it was because she remembered the conquest."

"So...that was why you went to the Festival with Chi." She said, the depressing night flashing back into her mind." He seemed to be even sadder now.

"It was. I still wasn't convinced that Mercury was in her, as the route was a bit off, as Chihiro was the one initiating all of the events. But I choose to pursue her route to the end, because you had quit responding to my advances." Ayumi was suddenly incredulous, eyeing him like he was a cockroach.

"And it never once occurred to you that maybe she just liked you?" Now he looked at her with a raised eyebrow, perplexed.

"No. Of course it didn't. I gave no reason that a real girl _could_ like me. Honestly, I still cannot fathom any reason why she seems to like me now, especially given how the Mai-high festival went." Ayumi's eyes narrowed at the flat way he phrased it.

"So you just charmed her again." Her tone was clearly acidic.

"No. At least, I do not think so. She came to me, and arranged with Haqua to get me to explain the events surrounding the Goddesses. Then, she yelled at me for a while, and now... we are... dating." He said the last word as if it felt weird inside his mouth. Ayumi sighed, but now her feathers were up, and she was angry, rather then sad.

"Alright, then, Katsuragi. I'll ask you again. Why are you after Chihiro this time?" He met her eyes, and did not look irritated, and Ayumi realized that she had never really seen him without a blank or faintly scornful look on his face. It made her heart flutter, even as she wanted to smash it.

"I... I am..." He stopped, and had to think. "I think... I want to make her smile, this time." His head rocked back as he was hit with by her balled fist.

"Don't feed me your cheesy lines, you stupid creep!" She growled, having expected such a line from him. He did not look angry, just pensive.

"I know you won't believe me, but, as far as I can analyze, it's true. I still picture her face that night, when I had to tell her that I was just being cruel to her to pay her back, so I could switch onto your route. I never knew I could hurt someone that badly before. I... never want to do that again." He looked genuinely sad, but Ayumi knew how good an actor he was. But in the back of her mind, she could still see the resoulution and remorse he had on the night her released Mercury, and told her that he did not love her.

"More or your stupid lines! Why can you not just ..." She stopped, as Elsie edged into view.

"Ayumi... I think, divine brother is telling the truth this time. The week after the festival was over, and he skipped school, he did not leave his room. And he's been different since after the week he awakened the Goddesses." Elsie looked worried and sad.

"Yeah." Haqua added, moving over too, looking angry and a little hurt herself. "I haven't known this creep as long as Elsie, but long enough to understand his basic pattern. Once Kanon was stabbed, I had to spend a lot of time with him. He was different, during and after, aside from the pompousness and blunt rudeness." She added, almost as an afterthought.

"Will you to shut up and go away! I don't need your help!" He said, looking more normal with his irritation back in place. Ayumi ignored it, and continued with her questions.

"So, then you did that when you found out she was not a host?"

"No. Had I been faster, I could have prevented it. When I had gone to kiss her, she told me it was going to be her first kiss. That was the point when I realized she was not a host, because she did not remember the conquest. But I was confused, as I couldn't understand why she would ask me to attend the festival with her unless she remembered. But, she kissed me before I could get my thoughts straight, and I had to awaken Mercury, so I had to abandon the route." Ayumi thought she detected actual sorrow in his manor at this. But, she had confirmed what she wanted to know. He did seem to like Chihiro...and he did not like her. She stood, her eyes downcast.

"One last question. Did you... ever care about me, at all?" She asked darkly. He did not reply, and Ayumi let her eyes rise to look at him, lost in what looked in uncomfortable contemplation.

"Ayumi... I am not good at interacting with people. I can read and influence the emotions of some in situations I prepare, but in general, I just don't know what to do. But, I will be honest with you, I owe you that much. Until the episode with Kanon being stabbed, you all were nothing more them impediments to me getting back to playing my games. But while I do not like you, like I like Chihiro, I do consider you a real person I don't dislike knowing." Ayumi kept her face down, and turned away.

"Ayumi..." Mercury said, looking sadly out of her half full mug, before disappearing.

"Katsuragi..." she said in a whoosh of air, as an unseen tear rand down from one eye, "I think... I think I hate you. Just, leave me alone from now on." She hurried from the Cafe, unwilling to cry in front of him. Elsie called after her, chasing out the door to walk her home. Keima watched her go.

"Are you okay?" Haqua asked him, wiping her hands on a dish towel. He did not answer, but sighed, looked at her without really registering she was here, said goodnight, and moved into the house proper.

 **End 8**


	9. Chapter 9

_"The World God Only Knows: All the Kings Horses…_

 _By: The 483_

 _Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the The World God Only Knows Franchise._

 _ **Spoiler Alert: Warning: Light to mild spoilers for the Anime may be included herein.**_

 **All the Kings Horses…**

 **9**

"Ayumi." Mercury said, for the fourth time, looking down from the small vanity mirror and the girl laying on the crumpled sheets. Ayumi had rushed home, sworn off dinner with some excuse, taken a quick bath, and collapsed on her bed. She was ignoring Mercury the whole time. Mercury was about to try again, when Ayumi finally spoke.

"It's your fault." Mercury fixed her gaze at the back of Ayumi's head. She was the most awake looking she had been since being revived.

"Yes, it is. So why did you tell the devil that?" She replied. When Elsie had walked her home, she had turned before going in, telling her that she would continue to meet with the other Goddesses when necessary. She also added that she was to tell her brother, that if he told Chihiro anything that they had spoken about tonight, or even that they had spoken, she would kill him. Ayumi rolled over, and stared at the Goddess in her mirror.

"Why did you choose me?" She asked, in a dead voice.

"I didn't. I was surprised to find myself still a self, when I awoke inside you. Last I remember, is our sacrificing ourselves to seal off the Old Hellions, and not thinking I would ever wake again."

"Right. So, while it is your fault, it's not your fault. I can't deprive you of the need to see your sisters and _him_ just because I don't want to." And she did not want Chihiro to know she was done with Keima, because she was already confused enough with the situation as it was. And Ayumi refused to be a bone of contention now that Chihiro was getting what she wanted.

"Especially as seeing him is what you want the most." Mercury replied, tiredly.

"No I do not!" She growled back. Mercury sighed.

"Ayumi, it's pointless to lie to me. You cannot get rid of me, that I know of, so you can at least take advantage of the one friend you have that will not think anything bad about you for being honest. After all, I do get some of your surface thoughts, even if they aren't aimed at me." Ayumi took a moment to reply, her mind roiling in anger and shame.

"Okay." She finally said, through gritted teeth. "Yes, I do want him, as much as I am angry at myself for feeling that way."

"Logical," Mercury said in her normal, lackadaisical tone, "the heart wants what it wants, and that boy is good at being what the heart wants. And being jealous of your friend is natural, too."

"I am NOT jealous of Chi!" Ayumi shot back immediately.

"Yes you are. Because she has what you want, even though your prettier, more interesting, and have wanted it for longer."

"What!?" Ayumi sat up with horror on her face. "That's not true!" She said forcefully, because she had had such thoughts many times, though she never would have admitted it.

"Do not get so worked up. You humans are so tiring. Just because that is true, doesn't mean the feelings of affection, pride, happiness you feel for her are any less legitimate. The emotional response center of a human is a complex thing. There is no such thing as an emotional paradox, because you can have wildly conflicting emotions exist at the same time, and not cancel each other out." Mercury sighed again. She didn't like when she had to work this hard. She liked Ayumi so much in part because she was so active, she tended to sort her own problems out fairly quickly, without to much thought. Her current turmoil was like having loud construction work right outside the window, the entire time she was awake.

"So, as long as you still don't hate Chihiro, like you don't now, you don't need to feel guilty for your feelings of superiority over her. I imagine if you told her your fears, she'd likely agree with you. She's seemed to be understanding, from what I've seen." Ayumi was quiet again, but her mind seemed to be calming, somewhat.

"But, how do you know if that is the case?" she asked, more quietly.

"I don't. But, she is better suited than almost anyone to know what your troubles are. And, she was fine when you admitted you were not really on her side the "first" time she was going to try and form a relationship with Katsuragi."

"Hmm... yeah... I had forgotten that." She paused, and thought hard for a moment. "Yeah, that sounds right. Thanks, Mercury." Mercury smiled at her.

"No problem. I like you, Ayumi, you're a good, honest girl. I am happy that I got you as my host."

(...)

Miyako Terada did not live a complicated life. Partly, because she was an intelligent, active teenager of moderate, (if she was being modest) attractiveness, and a diverse set of skills. She had put in a semester of Track, before she needed the time to attend a cram school, scored in the top percentile of her grade in exams, and was able to put 3 years of childhood piano lessons to work as the keyboardist of the band she was in with her four closest friends.

Three of these friends, she knew, were idiots. Not stupid, although she sometimes had her doubts that Elsie had all of her screws in tight, but idiots none the less. All of them were infatuated with the same boy, too. A troublesome development, to be sure, and thus one she feigned ignorance of, because she just did not want to have to deal with it. Selfish, maybe, but also a bit of pride. None of them had told her they liked him, so she would not acknoledge it, to them, until they did.

If one chose to overlook personality, Katsuragi was not to terrible. And otaku who was also a womanizer was a bit of an oddity, but she was an adaptable woman. She had seen him together with no less than 7 other girls, not including Ayumi, Chihiro, and Yui, who seemed to want to ignore the original time they had spent with him, which was okay with Miyako. If they were so embarrassed they wanted to bury the memory of being charmed by that loser, it was fine with her.

She did find it interesting that he had made passes at all her friends except her, but she was not irritated by it. The fact that he seemed to try harder the more one rejected him, was something she did not particularly want to deal with.

But, it was becoming increasingly harder to ignore, with the fact that two of the had been depressed over the last week. Such thoughts were forced to the front of her mind as she opened the door to their clubroom, and found Chihiro, back facing the door, strumming out a mournful tune on her guitar. She slid the door closed quietly, listening to the halting rhythm Chihiro was wrestling from the strings of her instrument. Even in the choppy form, Miyako recognized the song.

Unbeknownst to her friends, Miyako had a predilection toward American Hard Rock and light Metal music that she did not outwardly allow to show. Her interest had first been piqued years back, when she had heard the intro to a song that was coming out of an small CD store. The intro had been done on a keyboard, and had an almost bell like feel to the notes, and had immediately caught and held her attention, before an indecipherable male voice started screaming harshly and a bass drum vibrated the air in the shop. That was back before she could read and understand some basic English, but listening to English music was nothing new. Everyone listened to English music, now and again. She had been thrilled when the chorus arrived, and she recognized the same notes again, but done with guitar and drum beats, and again just before the final chorus when the piano notes wove back into the melody. The contrast between the sharp, clear keys, and the violent, heavy assault of the Bass intrigued her.

Over the following years, she found many bands in the genre that incorporated keyboards prominently into the heavy driving music, and she fell in love. Shortly before the formation of her band, she had become aware of the growing number of female fronted Hard Rock and Metal groups, and was all the more invested in it.

So, walking in and hearing Chihiro try and pick out the tune of Evanescence's "My Immortal" was a surprise for sure, but further proof in her mind, that Chihiro was depressed. She had been toying with, and listening to much American music the was depressing in the past week. And she was finally irked enough to say something about it.

"Hello, Chihiro." She said, moving into the room, and placing her bag in the corner. Chihiro stopped her strumming, looked over her shoulder, the wiggled until she had managed to turn on the stool to face Miyako.

"Oh, hey, Miyako. You're here this early today, too?"

"Yeah. The Cram school tutor had to cancel today, I got the text during the last period. I guess her grandson is being born, and she wanted to be there.

"Aww, that's great!" Chihiro smiled. She didn't know Miyako's Cram Tutor very well, but Miyako occasionally talked about her. "Good thing finals are already over, right?" Miyako chuckled.

"Yeah. The kid has good timing. No Ayumi, Yui, or Elsie yet?" Chihiro shook her head.

"Ayumi has Track first, Yui needed to do something for her mother, you know how she is, and Elsie had to help her brother with something before she could come." Chihiro managed to not let her voice change when she got to the last part. She was getting better at not reacting oddly the more time passed. "They should be here in about an hour."

"Alright, then," she said, sliding behind her keyboard, and sitting down, and the leaning her elbows on the dead space in back of the keys, "Why have you been depressed over the last week?" Chihiro stopped adjusting her strings, and stared in open confusion.

"Depressed? Me? What are you talking about?" Chihiro was taken aback. The question was so far from expected, and fact, that she was stunned. She wasn't depressed. She was confused, frustrated, tired, and oddly happy, although she could not really express how she was happy.

"You been kind of distant, and not focused lately. And you keep listening to depressing music." Chihiro could not argue with the first two points. The first, because she was trying to spend what time she could with Keima, and the second because she was distracted. She was torn between the need to tell Yui that she was dating Keima, and the fear of her reaction. But the last part...

"Depressing music? What do you mean?" Miyako raised her eyebrow.

"Take that one you were playing when I walked in." Miyako pulled back, cracked her knuckles, and began to precisely tap out the melody Chihiro had just been struggling with. Chihiro looked excited, and walked over.

"Wow, you know that song?" Miyako did not reply, but finished playing up to the chorus. "But, how is it depressing?"

"Don;t you know the words?" Miyako asked, skeptically. She had a decent command of basic English, so she could understand parts of the spoken English, and parrot it. But she was much better with written English then verbal. Chihiro looked sheepish.

"Umm... no. I don't really understand any of the words. I just like the melody, and the part when her voice rises and she really belts it out makes a chill run up my spine."

"Really? But you got a 100 percent on the test before the festival."

"Yeah... but, that wasn't so much a, I knew how to get the answer, as a I already knew the answer situation. Katsuragi coached us on what would be on the test. Anyway, what is the song abou that is so deepressing?"

"Well, the part you like, is basically a decree about an absentee partner, who, while physically still invested in the relationship, has mentally checked out."

"Oh, that is less then optimal..." She replied. "I have been listening to a lot of English music, recently. Is it really more depressing?" She asked.

"Well, take this one..." Miyako recalled the melody in her mind, and began to play. It was another with a simple, piano tune. "It's the story a boy meets girl in three versus, of the father telling his son to avoid falling in love if he can because his mother dies of an illness."

"Oh my goodness! Really? It's such a nice, calming sounding song!"

"So, then, you are not depressed?" Chihiro shook her head.

"Nope. Not at all." Miyako frowned.

"So, then you didn't fight with Ayumi or anything?" Chihiro looked really surprised again.

"What? No!"

"Then why is she depressed?"

"Ayumi is depressed?"

"Yeah, didn't you notice? I thought you both were, so I was worried something happened between you two."

"No, I am really, _really_ , not depressed. And I haven't noticed anything with Ayumi, either."

"Hmm, well, considering how off I apparently was with you, I am now wondering if I am just imagining things."

"I don't know. But I will keep my eyes open. Anyway, Miyako, I am surprised you know about these songs. Do you listen to this music often?" Miyako gave a self satisfied smirk.

"I listen to a lot of American hard rock, Here, let me get this going." She dug in her bag, and removed an Ipod and some headphones. She selected a playlist that had a good assortment, Amity Affliction, Halestorm, Metalica, Five Finger Death Punch, and even a little Tom Petty Black Sabbath. It was her "Easy Listening" list, one she usually played while she was studying, to help her relax. She handed the device to Chihiro. "Here, this is some of my favorite songs." She had queued it up so that it would start on "Soldiers" by The Otherwise, a song with a nice, constant back beat and was about the unsung heroes who kept society going, as well as those who protected it.

Chihiro put in the headphones, and started listening, first having to turn down the volume a bit. She was lost in it, so Miyako started playing around on the keyboard, getting into some In Fear and Faith. Elsie never did show up, calling and saying that things had become complicated, and she was needed at home. So, they didn't really accomplish much practice, but they enjoyed the time nevertheless.

(...)

"Miyako, dear. Isn't that your friend Chihiro over there?" Miyako jerked out of her own self minded reverie, and guided her eyes in the direction her mother indicated, shifting the bags in her hand, which was rapidly falling asleep under the burden. The Sunday afternoon sun sat just over the roofs of the buildings across the road from them, but there was no mistaking her, looking kind of nervous yet buoyant in a light pink sweater and white thigh high socks, her fingers damningly interlaced with none other than Keima Katsuragis.

"Oh my, it looks as if it is." She said, her voice strangely intense.

"And that boy she is with... does she have a boyfriend?" Her mother asked, looking troubled, as she contemplated why he looked familiar. "And wasn't he that one loud boy who came over to the house that night a few months back? I thought he was with your friend Ayumi?"

"Hmm..." Miyako muttered. "I am going to go and say hello. I'll catch up to you at the general store." She started off for the next intersection before her mother could answer. Mrs. Terada looked after her daughter, wondering if Miyako might have some slight sadistic tendencies. She recognized the smile her daughter had form her own high school days. Like a hyena that had just detected fresh blood. Like a pod of dolphins, high school girls were always ready to find a weak member, and pounce upon it, bludgeoning it to death. Girls were certainly scary. She shook her head, and moved up the street.

Keima had gotten more used to being with Chihiro over the few months they had been together. Though there overall time was limited, they had gotten closer, and were, if nothing else, less awkward around one another. And Chihiro found herself involved in the Spirit hunt, mostly on the periphery, but she was occasionally able to help out in the set up with Ryou and Yukie now and again. She had initially marveled at how they were buddies, but were very sidelined, with Haqua and Nora being, initially, far more vital to the extraction of spirits. But Keima now was the dominant figure, although Yukke, with her own method, was still working her own people. But the number of spirits lately had fallen, so for a week now, Keima had only had one target, and now had no need to hide Chihiro from her.

"So, let me see if I have correct." Chihiro said, trying not to laugh. "The reason you've been busy, is you couldn't figure out what approach to take with your current conquest. So, once you did figure it out, you have been throwing variable at...*snicker* her." She had to stop, as the chuckle momentarily broke loose. She calmed herself, an finished. "So, the avenue you need to approach her is using Haqua, and Haqua will have none of it?" The giggle was clear and took a few seconds to stop. Not because of the base situation, but because she could imagine the look on Haqua's face knowing that it was her turn to run a conquest. Because while she had a crush on Keima, and tolerated Chihiro, and liked Yukie in her own way, otherwise she really disliked humans, on the whole.

"Yes, she is being completely unreasonable about it. With all the crap her and the other New Hell Demons have forced us to go through, I don't think this is too much ask." He said, crossly, but also almost absently. Chihiro knew asking her to suddenly go Yuri for this conquest was a bit more complicated than that, but she also had no desire to volunteer for the job herself, so she was not about to butt in. Besides, she had something she needed to ask.

"Hey, Keima, do you know why Ayumi has been depressed all week?" She could, on occasion, get information out of him just based on his reaction to the question. And by asking while making a 180 in the middle of another subject could help. There was an 8 second pause while he formulated his reply. This was as good as a confession of guilt. Were it something he was making up, he could rattle off something instantly. If he had to think about it, it either meant that she had put him in a new situation not plodded over countless times in his games, or her was making something up. She had encountered the former many times in the past couple months. Keima decided that he was not going to lie to her.

"Chihiro, I am not sure, but I cannot speculate. You should ask her if you are concerned." He said carefully, putting on his best sage voice. It was however a clear evasion, and he brows knitted in preparation to stop that so that would not become a habit. But, as she opened her mouth to speak, a voice that chilled her very blood spoke from in front of her.

"Oh, Chihiro? Hi! Funny running into you out here." Miyako's voice carried the predatory smile in its faux surprised tone. Chihiro couldn't answer as her mind went into full panic mode, and her hand snatched away from Keima's.

"Uh..upp, I... er... we... urp..." She sputtered incoherently, to surprised to think. She had spent all her time worrying about his conquest targets seeing them together. She knew enough about her friends schedules to not run into them. Logically, Miyako should not be here now, she should be...with her tutor, who was out with a baby. Crap.

"Chihiro came by to go with Elsie to the CD store to browse some music, but Elsie was working in the Cafe. But she also wanted an album, and asked me to go." Chihiro's brain was fried, but she could still appreciate what he was doing. Keima was certainly special. Most, if not all other guys would have been irritated by having a girlfriend who was so embarrassed to be dating them. But Keima almost seemed to embrace it, and might have felt close to the same about her, but for different reasons. But either way, she was very grateful that he was so understanding.

"Yeah...no." Miyako said. "You're a horrible, selfish excuse for a human being. That couldn't happen."

"I was out doing some shopping for my mother, and we ran it eachother, and just happened to be going in the same direction." He amended, with no expression on his face.

"Still no. Besides, that invalidates your first story." Chihiro was still to mortified at getting caught to voice the loud "duh, you idiot." Miyako smiled innocently.

"Also, if either of those were true, they don't serve to explain why you two were holding hands." Chihiro, completely at a loss for rational thought now, buried her face in her hands.

"We are secretly cousins. We've known each other since we were young, but avoid letting anyone know due to confusing and overly complicated family circumstances." Miyako took a second to realize that he had actually just said that. She took a full step back, settling on her rear foot, and placing hands on her hips, her face adapting the classic, "are you serious!?" expression mothers have for when they catch their children in an obvious lie.

"Okay, now I am starting to think you really believe I am stupid." She puffed haughtily. Keima, still not missing a beat, shook his head.

"No, I do not. But, for expediency's sake, I kind of hoped you'd fake it." The answer, so blunt and honest, was surprising. Miyako faltered, but regained herself shortly.

"It's okay. I understand what's going on. There is something going on between you two, but Chihiro doesn't respect me enough to tell me what is going on."

"No!" Chihiro cried, almost in tears now. Keima was a little miffed to find that seeing this made him distinctly uncomfortable. Perhaps this odd infatuation he was having was developing into a long term affliction. That was upsetting. He did not like that something other than his game could affect his emotional stability.

"That is not it at all, and you know it." He replied reproachfully, causing both girls to gape at him. "Chihiro and I are doing what I believe can be considered dating, in some sense of the word. But, she is as you can no doubt see, very embarrassed and somewhat ashamed of this fact, as she rightfully should be." Chihiro almost forgot her upset at hearing this unfortunately factual recap of their status. Keima adjusted his glasses, refocused his irritation and continued at a snapping retort. "But she also does not want to spread it all over, because there are some very sticky complications involved in us having a relationship."

"Because you're a womanizing scumbag?" Miyako added, still slightly taken aback by him seizing the offensive at what would normally be his own social detrement.

"No. Because, through no fault of their own, Ayumi and Yui also harbor some feelings for me, and Chihiro is afraid of hurting them by being with me."

"Enough!" Chihiro shouted, and pushed Keima away. She swatted at her bangs, and was glowing bright red, all the way to her ears. "Jeez, that idiot talks to much!" She muttered under her breath, before meeting Miyako's eyes.

"Miyako, really. It's not that I don't trust you, or care what you think. In fact, what the dork said is true, the fact that I fell for _him_... is really, really embarrassing, and I have enough trouble dealing with my own feelings about it. But, I really did plan on telling you about it soon. I, uh... already told Ayumi. But I still have no idea how to tell Yui. The dweeb offered, but I can't let him do that. Yui, like you and Ayumi, are my friends to tell." She took a deep breath, and grabbed the lower edge of her skirt. "So... yeah, Keima and I are...kind of... going out, I guess..." She trailed off, a fresh wave of embarrassment sweeping through her at saying it out loud.

"Well, I suppose I understand." Miyako said after a moment of thought. "I'll let it go, this time." She smiled, and Chihiro smiled back, before she jumped forward, and gave her friend a hug.

"But, still, for now, at least, it's best to not let anyone know that we are dating. Elsie and Ayumi know, and I am going to tell Yui as soon as I can figure out what I should say."

"No problem." Miyako said, all smiles now that her fun was through, a twinge of regret still biting because she almost made Chihiro cry. "My lips are sealed. Anyway, I have to go catch up with my mom before she starts to worry! See you at school tommorrow!" She turned on her heel, and was gone.

"Girls process emotional input way to quickly." Keima said, moving back up to stand next to Chihiro.

"And you process head up your ass far too often!" She glared up at him. The words didn;t seem to have any effect, but deep inside his head, a small amount of effort would go to making less of an ass of himself in the future. She sighed, and he offered his hand to her again. She stared at it for a moment, and after an agony of indecision, took it. The continued the walk, neither knowing the horror that awaited at home, as Elsie was in the kitchen tonight, and due to special efforts on her part, even the rice would be inedible.

 **End 9**


End file.
